The king of clay, Rafael Nadal has inspired an entire generation of tennis fans. However, it would be naïve to assume Nadal’s greatness has only touched people from the world of tennis. The 22 Grand Slam winner recently withdrew from his favorite court, the Roland-Garros, which united the entire world to voice their support for the Spaniard. F1’s Spaniard Carlos Sainz was among many who penned his support for Nadal, something he does often. Now, after Charles Leclerc’s recent interview, it turns out Ferrari has not one but two drivers who admire the tennis legend.

The Spaniard has touched many lives and among those millions, Charles Leclerc is among those. When quizzed about athletes he admires from other disciplines, Nadal was top of Leclerc’s mind. The Ferrari man, as quoted by Gazzetta, even revealed the simple reason behind the admiration.

The Ferrari man said, “I like Rafa Nadal, for what he has achieved in tennis and for the fact that he has remained a simple person, it was enough for me to just know him to understand him. Then I am a friend of Fabio Quartararo and Valentino Rossi.”

Read More: Hours After Rafael Nadal’s Disheartening Roland-Garros Withdrawal, F1 Star Comes Out to Cheer Up the King of Clay

Apart from the F1 and MotoGP connection, Nadal is the athlete that Leclerc admires, such is the greatness of the Tennis star. However, even the best must resist after a while and it seems that time is nearing for Nadal.

The heartbreaking confession of Rafael Nadal after the French Open withdrawal

The King of Clay always walks into the French Open as the favorite. However, for the 2023 edition and in the last year of his professional career, Nadal had to sadly withdraw. The reason? His injuries! The 37-year-old is finding it harder to keep up with the physical demands of the sport but does not want to end his career injury stricken and out of the blue.

“I’m going to try to make my last year not just a party, I’m going to try to compete at the highest level, give myself the option to try to compete and win tournaments on this clay tour. The reality is that we’ll have to wait for that,” confessed Nadal.

WATCH THIS STORY: Emotional Rafael Nadal Gets a Cheer Up from Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz After Roland-Garros Withdrawal

In the world of sports, no one knows what the future holds. However, for the sake of the fans and for Nadal, the entire world will be hoping for a fairytale ending before his final goodbye.