Rumour has it Leclerc has signed a "pre-contract" with Aston for when the Ferrari is a shambles again.
This came up in my feed late yesterday and I got to wondering how feasible this is.
Why would any constructor wait until the season is off the ground before serious changes to literally everything including uniforms, helmets, the car itself, strategy and marketing? That shit is hugely expensive.
Plus, no time in car for tune-ups and mods before the season starts.
Not to mention, who gets ousted? The owner's kid or the beloved veteran? Stroll, sure. But is Aston going to ditch the strategy they started the season with for a guy who's entitled enough to step in and overthrow it all? Particularly up against one of the more fiery personalities on the grid?
Or...Fernando gets retired. Maybe he wants that. But even if he puts on a smile and goes on with life, it would still be perceived and an injustice to not keep a driver that people care about in favor of nepotism and a guy who is only now looking out for himself. Unless Leclerc wants a villain arc really badly ("And then I remembered I'm going to have a wife and kids at home.") Which I'd begrudgingly respect if he had the balls for it, and I don't think he does.
Still all seems like fantasy but interesting to think about.