Leclerc staying with Ferrari for years to come 

Charles Leclerc will race for Ferrari for years to come after the Italian Formula One team announced a long-term contract extension on Wednesday ahead of his home Monaco Grand Prix.

The 28-year-old Monegasque has driven for the Maranello-based outfit in F1 since 2019, winning eight races.

"I couldn't be happier to continue this journey with Scuderia Ferrari HP. It has always been so much more than just a team to me," Leclerc said in a statement issued by Ferrari.

Leclerc is currently third in the 2026 drivers' championship but 56 points behind Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli, who is 43 ahead of teammate and closest rival George Russell after winning the last four races.

He has raced more times for Ferrari (155) than any other driver in the team's history other than now-retired seven-times world champion Michael Schumacher, and also ranks second for pole positions behind the German.

PART OF THE FERRARI FAMILY

Ferrari did not specify the duration of his new contract, saying only that Leclerc would continue for the "coming seasons" in the championship.

"Charles has been part of the Ferrari family for many years now and this renewal feels like something very natural for us," team principal Fred Vasseur said.

"Over these seasons we have seen him grow, to become not only one of the strongest drivers in Formula One, but also a person who is completely at one with the team and everything Ferrari represents.

"We know how much this project means to him and we are happy to continue working towards our shared goals."

Leclerc joined the Ferrari Academy in 2016, won the Formula Two title in 2017 and made his F1 debut with Ferrari-powered Sauber (now Audi) in 2018.

Leclerc's teammate is Britain's seven-times world champion Lewis Hamilton, who joined from Mercedes last year on a multi-year contract and is expected to continue next season, when he will be 41 years old.

Hamilton is fourth in the standings, three points behind Leclerc.

Ferrari have not taken a grand prix victory since 2024, or a championship since 2008, but Hamilton won a Saturday sprint race in China last season and finished second in Canada last month.

Leclerc has had two podium finishes this season - third in Australia and Japan - and will be heavily fancied for his home race this weekend, with Ferrari expected to be competitive at the slowest circuit on the calendar where top speed is less of a factor and grid position is crucial.

Growing up in the principality, Leclerc in 2024 became the first local to win the Monaco Grand Prix in the championship era and has taken pole there three times in the last five years.