Leclerc predicts “difficult” F1 weekend at “very special” Monza for Ferrari

Monza is a special race for Ferrari given that the grandstands are packed full of the Tifosi.

Leclerc took a famous victory back in 2019 - his first year with the team - beating the two Mercedes drivers at Monza.

Ferrari's weakness on the straights means it is set for a difficult home race.

“I’m very excited,” Leclerc said on Thursday. “It’s a very special place every time you come as a Ferrari driver, so I’m really looking forward to it. We’ve been in Milan yesterday, at the factory the day before and we can really feel the support for the race.

“I’m really looking forward to it, but it hasn’t been an easy weekend for us recently. On paper it looks like a difficult track for us this year, but, of course, we’ll try everything.”

Leclerc spoke about the level of support he receives at Monza, describing it as “very special”.

“Yes, here more than in any other place in the world,” Leclerc added. “Obviously, Ferrari has so much support all over the world, wherever we go and we can feel it, but coming to Italy it’s just different.

“The amount of support we have here, we don’t get it anywhere else in the world. Even just leaving the hotel this morning, there were hundreds of people for you and that’s so nice to see here that we have so much support. It’s definitively very special.”

Carlos Sainz narrowly missed out on the win in last year’s race, finishing behind AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly.

Since making the move from McLaren to Ferrari, Sainz says the reception from the Italian fans has been “very different”.

“Very different for sure, yes, really good memories from last year,” he said. “I could already start to feel a bit, as I was announced a Ferrari driver well before driving here in Monza for McLaren, I could feel like the relationship with the Tifosi was different, like they knew I was coming to the team, and I felt some extra support that year.

“This year has been another step; it’s crazy, we were yesterday in the centre of Milan for an event and the amount of support that you get as a Ferrari driver is just crazy. I don’t have any other word to describe it than crazy. And it’s something that I’m enjoying and I’m looking forward to keep feeling for the rest of the weekend.”