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ALL aboard the Charles Leclerc hype train.The Ferrari star, 24, has aced the start to this new Formula One era with two victories in the opening three races.
Charles Leclerc has raced into a 34-point lead at the top of the F1 championshipCredit: Getty
The latest on Sunday came in emphatic style in Melbourne, where Leclerc was on pole, took the win, led for every lap — and set the fastest lap to earn a championship bonus point.
The man from Monte Carlo now stands at the top of the rankings, with a 34-point lead over George Russell.
That is a bigger gap than Max Verstappen had at any stage last year over Lewis Hamilton.
Leclerc’s arrival is catching people’s interest — but for those who have followed his career it is not unexpected.
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.nk-headline-heading{color:rgba(71,30,121,1);}.css-1uyse24:before{content:”;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;left:0;overflow:hidden;position:absolute;z-index:1;}.css-xpuujo{border-width:0 1px 1px 1px;border-style:solid;border-color:rgba(149,199,208,1);padding:12px;max-height:104px;min-height:98px;}.css-tqcu81{padding:0;border-width:0 1px 1px 1px;border-style:solid;border-color:rgba(149,199,208,1);padding:12px;max-height:104px;min-height:98px;}.css-124tga5{overflow:hidden;-webkit-line-clamp:3;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;display:-webkit-box;word-wrap:break-word;line-height:1;}.css-5jzxpx{overflow:hidden;-webkit-line-clamp:3;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;display:-webkit-box;word-wrap:break-word;line-height:1;}.css-bq4915{margin:0;padding:0;color:rgba(34,97,108,1);text-transform:uppercase;-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;font-family:The Sun;font-size:18px;line-height:1.333;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:0%;font-stretch:normal;display:inline;}.css-bq4915:hover:not(:disabled){-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}WIZARD OF OZ .css-8h3gc3{margin:0;padding:0;color:rgba(34,37,38,1);-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;font-family:The Sun;font-size:18px;line-height:1.333;font-weight:700;letter-spacing:0%;font-stretch:normal;display:inline;}.css-8h3gc3:hover:not(:disabled){-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}Leclerc wins in Australian GP as Verstappen retirement hands Russell third
Unlike those who move to Monaco for the tax benefits, Leclerc was actually born in Monte Carlo. He won the GP3 series in 2016 and then followed that up the next year by winning the F2 title at the first attempt.
As part of his association to the Ferrari Academy, he had test-driver roles at Haas and Sauber before being handed a spot with Alfa Romeo.
Leclerc’s story is also laced with tragedy, which has shaped his character.
His father, Herve, who was a racer himself, died in 2017, aged 54. Just four days later, Leclerc won the feature race in F2 in Azerbaijan.
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He was also godson to Jules Bianchi, who died in 2015 as a result of injuries he suffered at the Japanese GP the previous year.
Leclerc has the talent, he also has the right mindset.
The main difference now is he also has the car.
He had a tendency to make mistakes but those were as a result of being required to over-drive.
Now Leclerc does not need to overstretch — as we saw in Australia. The big question is, can Ferrari maintain their own place at the front of the development race?
After all, no driver has ever won the F1 title without having an excellent car — no matter how good they are.
Full Monty
Pierre Gasly will go along with F1’s latest bling ban as well as checks for “non-conforming” underwear.
The AlphaTauri ace said: “If they want to check my a***, I’ve nothing to hide. My c***, everything. Feel free.”
Pierre Gasly is happy to comply with the new F1 regulationsCredit: Getty
No Stroll in the park
The Australian GP turned out to be a ‘turtle’ disaster for Aston Martin.
A summary of the big-spenders owned by Canadian billionaire Lawrence Stroll.
Sebastian Vettel has an engine problem. His car catches fire and he cops a €5,000 fine for using a scooter to get back to the garage.
Vettel is also fined €600 for speeding in the pitlane, while Lance Stroll smashes into Nicholas Latifi, earning him more penalty points on his licence.
Vettel crashed in the race and Stroll finished outside the points as Aston Martin became the ONLY team not to score in the opening three races of the season.
On top of this, champion Verstappen says the Aston Martin safety car is too slow, calling it a “turtle”.
Sebastien Vettel was fined €5,000 for using a scooter to drive back to the garageCredit: Twitter
Evans is almighty
DsTecheetah’s Jean-Eric Vergne fears Mitch Evans’ dominance at the Rome E-Prix was a warning.
Kiwi Evans won BOTH races and Vergne, who leads the standings, feels his position is threatened.
He said: “The Jaguar and Mitch were too fast.
“I hope that was a one-off, otherwise it might be difficult to beat them.”
Jean-Eric Vergne is wary of Mitch Evans’ speedCredit: AP
Marc of a champ
It is impossible not to respect Marc Marquez’s fightback from last to sixth at COTA — three weeks after his accident at the Indonesian GP.
The six-time MotoGP champion was heroic after his shunt in Mandalika.
He said: “My target was to try and not to have any crashes because I’m still scared about my head.”
Marc Marquez suffered a horror crash last monthCredit: AP More

REIGNING F1 champ Max Verstappen has said he “doesn’t want to think about” the championship, after he was forced to retire from the Australian Grand Prix.The Dutch racer, 24, had another disastrous race – and was forced to retire for the second time this season.
Max Verstappen has revealed he has forgotten about the championship after another disastrous raceCredit: Getty
Before his DNF, Verstappen was sitting comfortably in second place with 20 laps to go.
It means that the Red Bull driver has only finished one race this campaign as he aims to win back-to-back World Championships.
More importantly, he is already 46 points behind championship leader Charles Leclerc in the standings.
“We’re already miles behind so I don’t want to even think about the championship fight at the moment – I think it’s more important to finish races,” Verstappen told Sky Sports when asked how crucial those two DNF’s will be at the end of the season.
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“I mean, of course today was just a bad day in general. Not really having the pace so I was just managing my tyres to just try and bring it to the end.
“It looked like an easy P2 and I knew I could not fight Charles so there was no point to try and put pressure on him.
“But we didn’t even finish the race so it’s pretty frustrating and unacceptable.”
Ahead of the meeting at the Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit, Red Bull mechanics were seen giving the car a thorough examination.
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Verstappen revealed there were reliability concerns.
He said: “I knew there was a problem so it was always going to be a question mark of finishing the race.
“I mean these kinds of things, if you want to fight for the title cannot happen.”
Ferrari driver Leclerc won his second Grand Prix of the season after another commanding performance.
Verstappen had trailed Leclerc throughout in second place but a problem with his engine forced his retirement.
An engine issue forced Verstappen to retire from the Australian Grand PrixCredit: AFP
That pushed team-mate into Sergio Perez into second place with Mercedes pair benefitting also – George Russell taking a podium place with Lewis Hamilton fourth.
Elsewhere, Sky Sports viewers were given a laugh when F1 pundit Ted Kravitz drank beer from a spectator’s shoe whilst live on air.
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