The love-hate relationship between Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc keeps cropping up in subtle ways this season. Neck to neck from race to race, Charles Leclerc admits to wanting something Max has had the privilege of having.

So what do you think it is that the Dutchman has, and the Monegasque don’t?

Post winning the World Championship title, Max Verstappen got the privilege to choose his racing number as ‘1’, and the Dutch driver jumped at this opportunity.

Previously, this number was dawned by Sebastian Vettel in 2014 after he won the World championship. He had previously won four titles and had broken the record for the most consecutive wins with 9 victories! Max Verstappen seems to be walking right into his footsteps so far.

Amid all this, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc recently played a fun little game of truth and dare with Lissie Mackintosh. Wherein on his turn of truth, he was asked “If you could change your driver number to any number- what would it be and why?”

To this, Leclerc impulsively said, “Probably number one. That means I won a world championship to choose this one.”

Subtly hinting at wanting what Max Verstappen has achieved for himself. He went on to add, “But if it’s not number one, number seven is my favorite choice.”

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However, this F1 season isn’t where this rivalry between Max and Charles was born. To know the originals of their rivalry we would have to go back in time.

Max Verstappen-Charles Leclerc rivalry dates back to their karting days

The bittersweet relationship that Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen share is of the nature of a constant tussle between furious combats and mutual respect as well as sportsmanship. This dynamic that they share dates back to their career beginnings.

Leclerc has admitted to festering hate towards Max back in time that went both ways. The men still go at each other when the opportunity presents itself but also show incredible support for each other when the time calls for it.

In a chat with Sky Sports, Leclerc said, “It’s not like we have been easy or nice to each other! We’ve also been racing to the limit, but in a fair way. I hope this can continue”

Also, in another interview with Sky Sports in July, Max Verstappen stated he preferred his rivalry for the title with Charles Leclerc over Lewis Hamilton.

He said, “I prefer what we have now because, first of all, Charles I know very well, he’s a nice guy, we are a similar age – I think we are only three weeks apart.”

In the light of the latest Italian Grand Prix at Monza, Max faced intense booing across the finish line by angry Ferrari fans. Leclerc, however, stood up for the title rival, saying, “I think nobody likes booing and I think it shouldn’t happen. That’s it,”

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The buzz around the two incredibly talented men grows as they constantly take digs at each other and yet stand up for the right thing in the game.