What do you do when you’re 26 in a sport where age is of the essence and considered one of the best drivers on the grid with championship-winning capabilities but nothing to show for and an uncertain future? Do you extend your contract with your current team where you’re considered invaluable and at the same time the team is considered among the best in the sport’s history? However, the team has not performed at the level required to even compete for a championship since you joined. The only time they did, poor strategies ruined your chances. This is the dilemma Charles Leclerc is currently facing.

The 2024 season is Leclerc’s last contractual year with Ferrari. The Italian outfit would surely want to renew the contract of their star man, but the question remains if he would want to. In this piece, we will express our perspective, separate from general opinion, on whether Leclerc should extend his contract with Ferrari and for how long. If not, what are his options? We will try to justify it with all the past events and recent updates.

Will or should Charles Leclerc sign a 5-year contract extension with Ferrari?

The closest Ferrari came to fighting for a championship, especially after the disappointing 2020 season was in 2022. However, their championship charges lasted just the first 10 races, as the strategic errors and the unreliability of the car pulled the Italian team out of the competition. The expectations were higher, heading into 2023 with a supposedly better car and changes in the management. However, the new boss, Frederic Vasseur, obviously could not have an instant impact, and the SF-23 was worse off than its predecessor.

The unpredictable nature of the SF-23 was perhaps why Leclerc was not keen on commenting and thinking about his contract extension in 2023. However, Ferrari’s chassis technical director Enrico Cardile gave an in-depth explanation of the car’s unpredictability and why they hit a developmental roadblock in 2023. This proves despite not creating a competitive enough car for 2023 which was developed in continuity of the 2022 challenger, at least the team back in Maranello is aware of the limitations.

Being aware of what’s going wrong is half the battle won as Ferrari will get a fresh and hopefully powerful start to the 2024 season. This opinion was echoed by Leclerc as well. “After Monza, we understood more things which are good for this year even though it will be a small step in the right direction but mostly for designing next year’s car which is positive,” Leclerc told Sky Sports. “First of all the 2024 project is very different to the car we have this year. And with everything we’ve learnt so far, it reaffirms that it’s a good choice what we’ve gone for next year.”

This revelation is the primary reason we believe Leclerc might sign a contract extension with Ferrari. The Monegasque is the face of the operation and we have seen proof of that on many occasions at the expense of his teammate Carlos Sainz. Moreover, Leclerc loves Ferrari, and this feeling is reciprocated by the Tifosi as they’ve taken to him like no other in the recent past.

Read More: Despite Being Offered $204,000,000 Contract, Charles Leclerc Lays Down “Difficult” Conditions for Long-Term Future at Ferrari

However, at the end of the day, all love will be lost if Leclerc’s years are wasted at Ferrari driving a subpar car. Ferrari needs to at least take the fight to Red Bull if not beat them. This will be the biggest motivation for Leclerc to stay with the Italian team and this is why we believe even though Leclerc will sign a contract extension, it won’t be for 5 long years which will bind him to the team till 2029 and till 31.

Evaluation period for Charles Leclerc as he commits with caution

The standard is Red Bull, and they have proved this in two successive seasons. However, heading into the third year of the regulation, things will start to even out as we saw in the last half of the season as well. The top 15 in qualifying were separated by mere seconds. This is exactly how all new regulatory periods turn out. So now all the focus comes onto the next two seasons.

Ferrari now needs to build on high of the end of the 2023 season and produce a car that will see Leclerc win at least a few races in 2024. This will not only give confidence to the team, but it will also make a huge impact on Leclerc’s contract extension decision. However, a few wins don’t win you a championship, especially in the most extensive season in the sport’s history.

Race wins in 2024 will give Leclerc confidence that he can truly take the fight to Red Bull and Max Verstappen, the current man to beat. It will give him more races like Vegas, and that should be enough to make him sign an extension for at least two years. After 2024, if 2025 proves to be the season where Leclerc finally wins his first championship, which would be a tough mountain to climb and almost close to miraculous, he would want to stick around to see how the 2026 engine regulations fair and where it puts Ferrari in the grid hierarchy.

However, if this scenario fails and we see the Monegasque struggle through the next couple of seasons, his two-year extension that will end after the 2026 season will give him a clear picture of who’s where and help him make an educated guess.

WATCH THIS STORY: How Long Will Charles Leclerc Wait for Ferrari – Will He Leave for Some Other team Post-2024? 

In conclusion, we believe Leclerc can give two of his crucial years to Ferrari before he needs to seriously take his career in a different direction and away from Ferrari. Five years is definitely not an option, perhaps after the team earns his trust back.

Editorial Disclaimer: The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of EssentiallySports.