Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc
Butting heads with Xavi Marcos, Charles Leclerc has quashed speculation of a falling out as he wished his out-going race engineer good luck for the future.
In a year of surprise announcements, Ferrari pulled off another on Thursday when the Scuderia announced that Leclerc’s long-time race engineer Marcos would no longer be the voice in the Monégasque driver’s ear on Grand Prix weekends.
Xavi Marcos has stepped down from his race engineer role with immediate effect
Marcos will be transitioning to a different role within Ferrari, leaving his position as Leclerc’s race engineer immediately.
“The team’s brief statement announces that Xavi Marcos, who has gained valuable experience as a race engineer with the Formula 1 team, will now utilize his expertise in the development of other significant company programs starting from Monday, May 13th.”
Starting from the upcoming Grand Prix in Imola, Leclerc will be under the guidance of his current performance engineer Bryan Bozzi.
Although the decision was unexpected, it has been observed that Leclerc and Marcos have recently encountered some contentious moments.
Charles Leclerc’s stats against Carlos Sainz in 2024
F1 2024: Head-to-head qualifying record between team-mates
F1 2024: Head-to-head race statistics between team-mates
Despite a disappointing 2022 championship marred by strategy errors that hindered Leclerc’s campaign, there was a noticeable improvement in the following season. However, it is important to acknowledge that there were still lingering issues.
La Repubblica’s Alessandra Retico claims Marcos’ exit “was not entirely unexpected.
Leclerc has expressed dissatisfaction with the race management on several occasions in recent years, including the most recent race in Miami.
There appeared to be a sense of unease between the two individuals, reminiscent of the incident in Austin last year. On that occasion, the driver vented his frustration by forcefully hitting the steering wheel and helmet upon receiving a call from Marcos regarding track limits. However, it is worth noting that the Spaniard was actually referring to Max Verstappen’s time being invalidated for breaking the rules.
In China this year, a miscommunication arose between Marcos and Leclerc regarding a suggestion to return to his ‘original’ line on a specific section of the Shanghai track ‘for comparison’. Leclerc, perplexed by the request, was unable to comprehend what was being expected of him.
Leclerc angrily questioned, “What on earth does that imply?” Marcos retorted, “Let’s just drop it!”
Contrary to the rumors, the five-time Grand Prix champion expressed his well wishes for Marcos’ future on social media.
“On Instagram, he expressed, ‘After numerous years of working together, you were there for my inaugural pole position, my initial victory, and my debut year at Ferrari. You consistently outperformed me by relentlessly pushing, regardless of the circumstances we faced.'”
“Expressing gratitude for all you’ve done and wishing you the best of luck in your future endeavors.”
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