Charles Leclerc signs 5-year contract extension with Ferrari, until 2029: Reports

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc will continue with the team as he has signed a 5-year contract extension until the 2029 F1 season, according to La Gazzetta dello Sport. His previous contract ran till the end of the 2024 season.

With this extension, Leclerc will also get a pay rise. His salary will initially be €25 million, which will be hiked to €50 million by the end of his contract. It has also been mentioned that the announcement of this contract is "imminent."

This year was another disappointing season for Ferrari and Charles Leclerc as the team lost second place to Mercedes in the standings. Leclerc had 206 points and finished fourth in the championship, tied with Fernando Alonso.

This season was a step down from 2022, where Leclerc was the only contender for the world championship against Max Verstappen. He was the runner-up in the championship last year, as were Ferrari in the constructors.

---

Carlos Sainz in potential trouble despite Charles Leclerc's extension

Carlos Sainz has the same contract his teammate had, with a seat secured till the end of the 2024 season. It has been reported, however, that Ferrari only wants to extend the Spaniard's contract for a single season even though he is adamant about a two-year extension.

In the meantime, the team is also keeping an eye on the driver market. They could target McLaren's Lando Norris, whose contract is set to expire at the end of the 2025 season.

Sainz, notably, was the only non-Red Bull driver in the entire 2023 season to win a Grand Prix (Singapore).

Carlos Sainz celebrating his victory in Singapore earlier in the 2023 season (Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images)

2024 will be Charles Leclerc's sixth consecutive season with the Italian outfit. He has won five races so far with the team and has been on pole 22 times.

Leclerc has had a hard time getting to the top due to the car's performance, strategy decisions and driver errors, to name a few reasons. Ferrari had an good chance in 2022 to challenge Red Bull for the title, but there were too many issues with the reliability of the car.