Charles Leclerc: I can still let myself go while being a top F1 driver

Ferrari star says there is ‘time for everything’ amid gruelling routine

Charles Leclerc has insisted that he can still “let himself go” while defending his position as one of the top three Formula One (F1) drivers in the world.
The Ferrari star, 27, said there was a “time for everything” amid the stringent and often gruelling routine of a top athlete.
It comes as he has been campaigning as the first global ambassador and face of Peroni Nastro Azzurro zero per cent beer ahead of the sport’s off-season.
The eight-time Grand Prix winner said of his lifestyle off the track: “Let’s say that you’ve got to be responsible and there’s a time for everything.
“It doesn’t mean that sometimes I don’t also let myself go, I do let myself go, but there’s time for everything and throughout the season it’s incredible to have a product that lets me have a really good time with my friends, but has zero alcohol in it.”
The Monégasque racing driver, who became the second-youngest pole-sitter (number one qualifying driver) in history in 2019, admitted he still “has a little bit of fun” on holidays, but added that a non-alcoholic alternative is more appropriate for his lifestyle. 
The headier days of F1 were documented in Ron Howard’s feature film Rush, as well as the rivalry between the late Niki Lauda and British driver James Hunt.
Speaking about the pressures of fame that come with the sport, also popularised by the six seasons of Netflix’s docu-series Formula 1: Drive to Survive, Leclerc admitted that his private life “is not so private anymore”.
He said: “I think you learn how to live with it, and now it’s part of my life.
“Obviously I would never exchange my life, I don’t regret any of the choices I’ve made… because at the end of the day, this comes with a lot of positive points.
“It also comes with the fact that maybe my private life is not so private anymore, or less private, but it comes with so many good things.”
The 27-year-old, who has worked with Ferrari since 2016, added that living in Monaco was “a bit tricker” now as “more and more people know about Formula One”.
But his escape, alongside quality time with family, friends and his girlfriend Alexandra Saint Mleux, a fashion and art influencer, is playing the piano.
“I love music,” said Leclerc, adding that he took up learning the instrument during the pandemic when he had “a lot of free time”.
“Playing the piano is another way for me to think about something else… I started during Covid,” he said, but added that he was “too impatient” for lessons.
“I had two or three lessons… and I learned some of the basics that helped me start out, but it was enough for me to have the freedom to do what I wanted.”
He said that his childhood friends are the ones who can still find it “difficult” to “realise what my life is [now]”.
Leclerc added: “We are actually trying to stay in places where we can be quite private and just be between us, so they don’t really see the craziness that there is whenever I go to some places.”
Leclerc recently took friends to Monza, Italy, where they watched him win at Ferrari’s home Grand Prix in September.
He said: “Some of them did come to Monza, and then they saw the other part of my life that they don’t really experience that often.
“It’s funny, they always told me that they really struggled to imagine me inside a Formula One car whenever they watched the Grand Prix, because it’s not one of those sports where you see the faces of the athletes.
“You see a helmet and it’s very difficult for them to imagine that it’s me driving the car, but I think they are getting used to it little by little.”
Leclerc added he was “still surprised” at the trajectory his career has taken.