F1 News: Charles Leclerc Reaches Major Career Milestone At Japanese Grand Prix

Since his full-time entry into F1 in 2018, Charles Leclerc has scored 1000 points in Formula 1.

Despite the 2023 season's challenges, Charles Leclerc crossed a major milestone in his Formula 1 career of 1000 points. The Japanese Grand Prix saw Leclerc finish P4 with Ferrari's supposed tire degradation being the reason for a significant drop in the SF-23's pace. 

Ferrari has been upping its pace lately, given the team's first win of the season in Singapore. Though there was neither a win nor a podium finish for Leclerc, it was a significant marker suggesting that the SF-23 had become a lot faster with the recent performance upgrades.  

The Monegasque driver began his F1 career with Sauber alongside Marcus Ericsson in 2018, becoming the first F1 driver from Monaco after Olivier Beretta in 1994. However, a dream move to Ferrari was possible when the Maranello-based squad got him to replace Kimi Raikkonen in 2019. In the same season, Leclerc achieved 10 podium finishes, four fastest laps, two wins, and the most pole positions of any driver that season. 

Fast forward to the end of September 2023 and you'll notice Charles Leclerc in 6th place in the drivers' standings at 135 points, 15 points below teammate Carlos Sainz in fifth. So far, he has had three podium finishes in his account in 2023 but three DNFs in Bahrain, Australia, and the Netherlands have taken away a major chunk of the points, that might have otherwise ensured a higher rank in the standings. 

While it is highly challenging to earn a win this season, courtesy of Max Verstappen and his RB19, the first win for Leclerc might seem like a distant dream this year. The last time the 25-year-old won a Grand Prix was in Austria last year. But, you never know. 

Being the only non-Red Bull team to have won a Grand Prix this year, Sainz's victory in Singapore just proved that Ferrari's SF-23 isn't lacking significantly in pace, especially on high downforce tracks like the Marina Bay Street Circuit. And with Leclerc having scored a P2 this season in Austria, there is a slight hope that maybe, he might have a small chance to win a race this year. I'm sure he has his fingers crossed.