How did Maurizio Arrivabene fool Charles Leclerc during a Netflix film?

Reflecting on joining Ferrari, Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc has revealed that former Ferrari team boss Maurizio Arrivabene fooled him when the Italian called him to clear his future.

Having secured multiple championship titles and trophies between 2009 and 2013 in karting, Leclerc made the transition to formula racing in 2014 The Meonegasque made his debut in the Formula Renault 2.0 Alps championship in 2014, racing for Fortec Motorsports.

The Monegasque managed to claim the junior championship title in his first season which helped him secure a place in Ferrari's prestigious driver development program, the Ferrari Driver Academy.

2015 saw him compete in the FIA Formula 3 European Championship, taking three wins to finish fourth overall, behind champion Lance Stroll. The Monégasque was then moved into the GP3 Series for 2016, taking his first major title in a racing car at the end of the season with three victories.

In 2017, he stepped up into FIA Formula 2 Championship to win the title with a series of wins, thus becoming the first driver to win the GP3 and the F2 title in his debut year.

Leclerc impressed during a Budapest test with Ferrari in 2017 which earned him a race seat at the Alfa Romeo Sauber team in 2018. Following an impressive first season at the pinnacle of motorsport, Ferrari elected to promote him as its race driver alongside four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel.

Reflecting on how the phone called took place when then Ferrari team boss informed him about the Scuderia's plans, Leclerc revealed that the Italian fooled him at first.

“The first thing he told me was: ‘Oh, Charles, we are sorry, but we won’t take you for the Ferrari seat. I was very sad, but I kind of expected it because it was so early in my career. Then, there was a 15-second pause before he said, ‘I’m just joking. You are part of the team next year.’

“That was such a crazy feeling. I was with all my friends and also Netflix, so I couldn’t show my emotions on the call because I couldn’t announce it yet.

“I don’t think they ever used that scene because they never knew what was really happening on that call," Leclerc recalled.