“Too Spicy for Me”: Carlos Sainz’s Love for Chili Proves No Help as Charles Leclerc Fails Hot Mexican Challenge

On why Carlos Sainz is known as Chili, he said, “From Carlos to Charlie to Charles to Chili.” From adorning the ‘chili’ bucket hat at his home Grand Prix, the Spanish driver has made the pepper his brand. And fans love it. However, ahead of the Mexican Grand Prix, as Charles Leclerc dabbles in Sainz’s newfound brand, he fails miserably erupting memes and laughter from the F1 community.

Charles Leclerc has been going through spicy weekends one after the other. After the unfortunate events of the United States Grand Prix, knocking the Ferrari man down the order, the Monegasque now faces off against a chili. No, not Carlos Sainz, but a Mexican ‘delicacy.’

Being Carlos Sainz’s teammate cannot aid Leclerc in his challenge ahead of the Mexican GP

Forget Max Verstappen, ‘Chili’ is the biggest rival of Charles Leclerc this F1 season. Round one was the duel between the Ferrari men at Monza. In Front of the home crowd, Leclerc pulled up his sleeves and went elbows out against his teammate, almost binning it for the two. Round two was in Singapore with a cameo commentary from George Russell. The Mercedes driver said, “It looks like they’re going to sacrifice Leclerc.” The third round comprised team orders of letting Sainz, aka Chili by. And the latest duel comes ahead of the Mexican Grand Prix. However, the chili in question this time is an actual spice.

In a post by Charles Leclerc, he seems to enjoy a Mexican ‘delicacy’, until the spice slaps him inside out. The Ferrari driver took no pleasure in reinforcing the stereotype that Europeans akin to Americans cannot handle their spice. He tweeted followed by a laughing emoji, “Holà Mexico, te amo, but this was too spicy for me.” Honestly, we could have never figured out from the second picture that the spice was too much. Although the Monegasque took inspiration from Sainz to set up his car at Monza, his ‘Chili’ demeanor failed to inspire Leclerc as he undertook the hot Mexican challenge.

Although the Ferrari driver failed the ‘spice’ challenge,  a more serious, spicy and racy challenge awaits him and his team in Mexico.

READ MORE: “This Seems So Fake”: Charles Leclerc’s GF Alex & Carlos Sainz’s GF Rebecca’s Meet-Cute Leaves Fans Fuming

No dark-horse surprises from Ferrari at Mexican GP

Fighting for the championship in 2022, Leclerc lamented in a post-race interview that it was a lonely race for him. He finished P6 with a gap of a whopping 68 seconds to P1. Nevertheless, it was a respectable end after the Ferrari implosion. However, this year, as the Maranello Outfit fails to make the smallest dent on the highest step of the podium, the Ferrari man has even lower expectations. 

Although the Ferrari drivers led the way in the free practice sessions at the Mexican Grand Prix last year, any trojan horse surprise from the Outfit this weekend is unlikely. After Leclerc failed to convert his pole into a podium let alone a victory in Austin, Tifosi and drivers alike have, in Leclerc’s words, stopped thinking.

WATCH THIS STORY: What is the Lord-Like Name & Family Heritage of Ferrari Star Charles Leclerc?

It won’t be an exaggeration to call Ferrari’s situation anti-cathartic. Quite an unsavoury situation for the outfit once hailed as the blueprint for the sport. However, till then, Kimi Raikkonen remains Ferrari’s last world champion.