#series:f2

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topic: charles attends the podium for the 2017 monaco grand prix source: f1tv series: f2, 2017

[sargeantposting]

Little did he know that Formula One teams had an eye on him. Sargeant did two simulation evaluation days for Mercedes during his time in F3. He impressed James Vowles, who spent over a decade with Mercedes before taking the helm at Williams this year. “I was interested in looking at him because he had performance,” Vowles said, “especially when you go back to his Formula 3 performance in an average team.”

[...] At the time, Mercedes had a stacked driver group, and it moved on. Another team stepped in: Williams.

The call from management came in October 2021, a moment even Jacobs recalls vividly. He remembers looking up towards the sky and “sort of prayed saying, ‘Please, please let this happen.’” Williams — one of the oldest teams on the F1 grid — wanted to fund Sargeant’s F2 career because, according to Vowles (who was not part of the decision then or to bump him up to F1), the team “had deep belief that he was the real deal.”

In Sargeant, Williams’ sporting director Sven Smeets saw a young driver with “enormous potential” despite his taking a step backward. Smeets described the young driver as grateful yet quiet, at least at first, as he observed everything around him. He started going to the factory in the U.K. frequently as an academy driver during his F2 season last year. On the track, his performance continued to improve. As Sargeant started inching higher in the standings, breaking into the top three, Smeets said Williams began weighing whether he needed a second season in F2.

His one-lap qualifying speed in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia caught their eye. An F2 win in Silverstone also stood out. There was only one race they truly felt he made a mistake, in Holland. The others, Smeets said, were “a bad start from the line or the pitstop didn’t go that well.” They began telling Carlin Racing that if he’s still in the top three or four, what more is there for him to learn with another season in F2?

Former Williams team principal Jost Capito announced the decision in Austin during the 2022 U.S. Grand Prix weekend: Sargeant would be part of Williams’ 2023 F1 driver lineup.

Sitting inside the Austin paddock that weekend, it was evident that a wall was up as Sargeant did his first serious media rounds. The driver was reserved but thought through his answers, adding caveats like “not yet.”

Grounded but quiet.

Williams did what it could to ease the pressure. It added practice session appearances, and, heading into Abu Dhabi, simulation work and physical and mental work also increased. Making the jump from F2 to F1 is massive. Along with a more complex car and far stronger competitors, the team itself is bigger, and the media and marketing engagements more frequent and demanding.

“You also saw a Logan that is very, very, very emotional and something which you don’t see much from him,” Smeets said of the moment the last F2 race finished and Sargeant had secured enough points on his super license to make his move to F1 official. “So it became the raw emotion which I saw in Silverstone when he won the race.”

Source: "Why Logan Sargeant nearly had to quit racing — and why Williams pulled him back in" by Madeline Coleman, The Athletic Series: F2, 2021 & 2022

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source: charles' facebook series: f2, 2017

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source: "proust questionnaire: charles leclerc" (now deleted) format: interview season: f2, 2017

What is your greatest fear? Charles: Snakes! They’re scary!

When do you lie? Charles: I really rarely lie: I hate lying. Probably when my trainer asks what I ate for dinner! [laughs]

What do you most dislike about your appearance? Charles: My hair: it’s always such a mess to get it right!

What is the quality you most like in a man? Charles: In a man I don’t really care! [laughs] My friends are mostly funny, so I’ll say funny: I like to laugh.

What is the quality you most like in a woman? Charles: I think it’s a mix between her looks and what she is inside.

Full text of now-deleted interview:

What is your idea of perfect happiness? Charles Leclerc: Racing on a circuit with a beach quite near.

What is your greatest fear? Charles: Snakes! They’re scary!

Which person do you most admire? Charles: My father. For many people the father is somebody who inspires you: he was a bit of an example for me since I was a child, and he went racing and taught me many things, so that’s probably the reason.

What is your current state of mind? Charles: Very happy! I won the championship with a race to go, we’re in Abu Dhabi and it’s a great place for a holiday! [laughs] It’s also a good place to race, and you can arrive with a bit less stress with the title in the pocket, so it feels good.

When do you lie? Charles: I really rarely lie: I hate lying. Probably when my trainer asks what I ate for dinner! [laughs]

What do you most dislike about your appearance? Charles: My hair: it’s always such a mess to get it right!

What is the quality you most like in a man? Charles: In a man I don’t really care! [laughs] My friends are mostly funny, so I’ll say funny: I like to laugh.

What is the quality you most like in a woman? Charles: I think it’s a mix between her looks and what she is inside.

When and where were you happiest? Charles: Probably any time I’m on track and it goes well: Jerez was one of those moments, last year in Abu Dhabi as well. When you win a championship it feels amazing: you put a lot of dedication to win the title, and when you win a title there is so much happiness all around you as well, because obviously the team is very happy as well. It can sometimes be very short, but as short as it can be, it’s very intense happiness.

Which talent would you most like to have? Charles: Playing football: I’m so bad at it! I’m actually quite good on the kick ups, on the technical side I’m quite fine, but any time I need to shoot in the goal it doesn’t go well…

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? Charles: I don’t know! It’s a question I’ve never really asked myself, and you can’t really change yourself. I’m definitely not perfect, and any time I see something in myself I don’t like I change it, but at the moment…

What do you consider your greatest achievement? Charles: I guess winning Formula 2. Every year you go a step up in your career, when it goes well anyway, so the last championship I have won is Formula 2, so I would say that.

Where would you most like to live? Charles: I am so happy with my city: Monaco is an amazing city. Probably the only 2 other places that I really enjoy going are here in Abu Dhabi, and I went this year for the first time to Los Angeles and it was an amazing experience: I loved it. I probably don’t see myself living either here or in LA: I have everyone in Monaco, it is a small town where everyone knows everyone else, so Monaco.

What is your most treasured possession? Charles: My Fiat 500! It’s from 1969, and it’s just a great car! [laughs] It’s so much fun, and it’s not so quick but it’s very fun to drive, and actually people look at you more than when you are in a supercar or something like that! It’s always very fun to go in it.

What is your favourite occupation? Charles: It would be strange to not answer a driver!

What virtue do you most value in your friends? Charles: Honesty.

Who is your hero of fiction? Charles: Harry Potter: I’ve always been a fan when I was younger, and it has stayed with me! Okay, now a bit less, but if I have to pick one I will chose him because he is the one I followed: the movies I didn’t really like, but I was a huge fan when I was younger. And actually, many people say I look very much like him! [laughs]

Which historical figure do you most identify with? Charles: That is very difficult to answer! I don’t know.

What is it that you most dislike? Charles: Arrogance! It just makes me angry, to see an arrogant person: I think there are no reasons to be arrogant. And I have been racing for 15 years: I know many people! [laughs]

What is your greatest regret? Charles: Probably to have not enjoyed the times with my father enough while he was here.

What is your motto? Charles: I have one, but I can’t remember! [laughs] It’s something like with no dedication you won’t have the results you want: I can’t remember it in English…

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series: f2, 2017

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source: prema on youtube series: f2, 2017 "From this apartment I've actually watched, uh, for my first time the Grand Prix, a nice memory. I was with a friend playing with some small cars. I was more interested in the Grand Prix than playing with the cars. So."

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TODAY IN CHONTENT: NOVEMBER 25TH

source: racevideoindex on twitter series: f2, 2017

Charles, already F2 Champion, slows down on the final straight to allow teammate-- and good friend-- Antonio Fuoco a spot on the podium for their last race weekend together.

Prema quotes the two on the switch in their newsletter:

Charles Leclerc: "In the end, we let Antonio by, he deserved the podium and he’s fighting for championship positions so it’s positive for the team. Maybe we deserved the podium too because our pace was really really good, but we will try to max out tomorrow and to bring home the team championship.” Antonio Fuoco: “I want to thank Charles for the last lap because he did a great job and played it really fair, and I also want to thank the team.“

...but team orders are never fun for drivers, even when one of your friends benefits. Autosport manages to get a slightly less diplomatic Charles immediately post-race:

Then Leclerc suddenly slowed on the run to the line and Fuoco swept by to take the final podium spot behind race winner Oliver Rowland and Artem Markelov by just 0.015s. "I didn't have any problems [on the final lap]," Leclerc told Autosport. "It [was] just a team order because Antonio is still playing in the championship to be the second rookie, so they asked me to let him past." When asked if he was happy to obey the order, Leclerc replied: "I am not so happy, obviously, because in my opinion it's a bit pointless, but on the other side if it can help Antonio in some way by getting a better result in the championship I will help him because now I don't have any more to win. "A podium would have been fine and it was quite frustrating because our race was very good - I would have loved to do a podium. "I don't agree 100% [with] that decision but at the end it's team orders and sometimes you have you show that you can accept them also."

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Today in Chontent: March 14th (2017)