Whenever the conversation about Ferrari has come up in the recent past, it’s been in relation to the team’s possible welcome of Lewis Hamilton. Whenever that happened, it begged the question: Who would the seven-time champion replace? As part of Hamilton’s rumored $49 million Ferrari deal, Mercedes showed interest in a swap deal with Charles Leclerc. As both drivers had contract negotiations with their respective teams, Hamilton ultimately rejected Ferrari’s offer. But what instigated the rejection?

When Hamilton was linked to Ferrari, Leclerc—who’s always expressed how much he loves the Scuderia and wants to win a championship with the team—saw a possible threat coming his way. He neutralized it by having negotiations with his team and was rumored to have signed a 2+3 year deal worth $204 million, leading Hamilton to step out of the way. While the situation of both drivers being on the same team never came up during these talks, it did at the Dutch GP, and the Monegasque gave his views on the subject.

With Formula 1’s silly season not being silly enough this season, the media at Zandvoort this weekend took the opportunity to bring up silly situations and put them forth for Leclerc to answer. While talking to the Italian magazine LaRepubblica, the interviewer asked the Ferrari driver, “Hypothetically, would you team up with Lewis Hamilton?” Leclerc answered, “I like racing with the best, so it wouldn’t bother me.”

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With just this statement, Leclerc not only said that Hamilton is one of the best drivers he’s raced against but also that he would be up for the challenge if ever it may arise. Although the chances of that happening at Ferrari might still be possible, it’s not so likely at Mercedes.

Charles Leclerc revealed Mercedes was never an option for him

When Ferrari was targeting Hamilton, Mercedes and Toto Wolff showed interest in signing Leclerc. Although Ferrari came closer than any other team to challenging Red Bull since the 2022 regulation changes (when its performances were good at the start of last year), Mercedes is the team that has had experience fighting against and beating Red Bull. Every driver dreams of winning a championship, and as a 25-year-old, Leclerc might be at the peak of his career and would want to race for a team that could give him a competitive car.

Although he had one last season, Ferrari’s frequent blunders didn’t help its case, and Leclerc came out on the losing side. Considering Mercedes makes errors much less frequently than Ferrari, there’s no doubt the opportunity would’ve piqued Leclerc’s interest. But while talking about the talks that happened behind the scenes with Toto Wolff, Leclerc revealed that they were “Nothing real and serious, ever.” 

Would you be up to see a possible Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton partnership in F1?

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