F1 2019: 5 Reasons why Leclerc v Vettel will be close

#4 Leclerc's Junior Career is Ominous

Leclerc got his first F1 experience in practice sessions for Haas & Sauber.

Obviously, performance in one's junior career does not always translate into their level of speed in Formula 1 (just ask Stoffel Vandoorne). However, the pace at which Leclerc has ascended the ladder of the feeder series is very impressive.

It's incredible to think that when Vettel was celebrating his fourth driver's title in a row in 2013, Charles was still racing in karts and would first drive in single-seaters the following year. He gained widespread attention for his championship wins in GP3 and F2 in consecutive years in 2016 and 2017, respectively, and was a cut above the rest in both series.

Most drivers take at least a year to adapt to GP2/F2, but Leclerc hit the ground running, just like he did in Formula 1.

Yes, the quality of drivers in the junior series' isn't as high as F1, but, in some ways, those championship wins were very impressive, as cars in Formula 2 are all equal in terms of performance, something that isn't the case in F1.

Now that Leclerc will be piloting what will likely be one of, if not the, fastest car on the grid in 2019, he's in a great position to at least win a few races.