Lewis Hamilton continues to be excited by the potential of Charles Leclerc ahead of his first year with Ferrari.
The Monegasque’s promotion to the Scuderia is captivating many ahead of the 2019 season with Sebastian Vettel declaring him a “very serious” threat as he matches everything the German does in pre-season testing.
It is thought Leclerc could also motivate the four-time world champion to up his own game and potentially launch a championship bid of his own against Hamilton and Mercedes.
“Time will tell,” the Briton said to the media in Barcelona. “I think it would be unfair to put that kind of expectation on his shoulders.
“He’s young, he’s going to make mistakes, but he’s obviously very talented and most likely he’s going to surprise many people.”
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Hamilton also believes it would be a big mistake to overlook Vettel, who has made strong starts to the past two seasons before falling back after the summer break.
“You’re talking about a veteran, a four-time world champion. There’s no substitute for experience, so it will be interesting to see how those two parallels work together,” he stated.
“Charles has lots of experience to go through, but the great thing with a youngster is that you’re energised beyond belief, determined and you have more energy than the others do.
“It will be interesting to watch. I’ve been in that same situation with McLaren. You’ve seen it in one realm, it will be interesting to see it in another.”
