Charles Leclerc (French pronunciation: ​[ʃaʁl ləklɛʁ]; born 16 October 1997) is a Monégasque racing driver, currently driving in Formula One for Ferrari. Leclerc won the GP3 Series championship in 2016 and the FIA Formula 2 Championship in 2017.Leclerc made his Formula One debut in 2018 for Sauber, a team affiliated with Ferrari, for which he was part of Ferrari Driver Academy. With Sauber having finished last the year before, Leclerc led the charge to improve the finishing position in the constructors' championship to eighth, being the higher ranked of the two Sauber drivers. Starting from 2019 and until the end of the 2024 season, Leclerc will be driving for Ferrari. He became the second-youngest driver to qualify on pole position in Formula One during his first Ferrari season in Bahrain. The 2019 season also saw Leclerc take his first career win in Belgium, followed by winning his first Italian Grand Prix as a Ferrari driver the week after. He won the Pole Trophy in the 2019 F1 season becoming the youngest driver ever and the first non-Mercedes driver to win it.

Early career

2005–2013: Karting

Leclerc began his karting career in 2005, winning the French PACA Championship in 2005, 2006 and 2008. In 2009 he became French Cadet champion before moving up to the KF3 class in 2010, where he won the Junior Monaco Kart Cup. He continued in the KF3 class for 2011, winning the CIK-FIA KF3 World Cup, the CIK-FIA Karting Academy Trophy and the ERDF Junior Kart Masters.