Charles Leclerc’s father, Herve Leclerc, was close to the Bianchi family, specifically Philippe Bianchi and his son, Jules. The two families were so tight-knit that Jules was also the godfather of Charles Leclerc. This all started, however, with Herve and Philipe, who were childhood friends. Their friendship was key in the family’s passion for motorsports, which saw the children go into professional racing. Later in life, however, tragedy struck both sides with the deaths of Jules and Herve in 2015 and 2017.
Lorenzo Leclerc, the oldest child in the Leclerc clan, once described the two families’ initial meeting. Lorenzo shared how his stepfather and Philippe were close friends and gave his first impressions on meeting Jules.
“In a way, it all happened a bit by chance. Hervé (Leclerc) and Philippe (Bianchi) were childhood friends and we went to see them one day when it was raining. We met the Bianchi family, including Jules. Jules was 13 at that time but was already living on another planet.” [via Scuderia Fans]
It wouldn’t be too long before young Charles started coming around the go-kart track to become a racer. In fact, according to Philippe Bianchi, it was he who put the Monegasque in a kart for the very first time. It all happened on a day that Leclerc faked being sick so he could miss school and come to the track.
“We were always together, and it was me who put Charles on the kart for the first time: he was very little, and he pretended to be sick so that he could skip school and come to us with his dad, to the Brignoles Kartdrome.” [via Pit Debrief]
As Leclerc grew older, he was mentored by Jules in the ways of racing. Bianchi was on track to drive for Ferrari someday, and he is the one who recommended the Italian team to bring Charles on board their junior program. This led to him eventually joining the Scuderia team as one of their drivers, and is currently in his seventh season with the outfit now.
Philippe Bianchi reveals the similarities between his son and Charles Leclerc
Jules Bianchi passed away in August 2015, after he succumbed to injuries from an accident during the 2014 Japanese Grand Prix weekend. Last year, his father opened up about how he sees his son in Charles Leclerc. The senior Bianchi spoke about how both of them have the same competitive spirit that drives them to fully commit to racing.
“They had the same obsession for racing.
“It was more than a passion; they only wanted to race and win. A real vocation.
“They had the same competitive spirit in their eyes when they put the helmet on, really an incredible thing.”
Two years after his son’s tragic passing, Philippe lost his best friend, Herve. He died in 2017 after a long battle with cancer, never getting to see his son compete in Formula 1. While the loss of these loved ones hit hard, Bianchi spoke about how it has brought him and Charles closer.
“ I lost my son, and he lost his dad.”
“But this did not separate us, it united us even more.” [via Pit Debrief]
Last year, at the Japanese Grand Prix, Charles Leclerc sported a special helmet that was a tribute to his godfather. It was also a meaningful homage, given that last season’s event marked 10 years since Jules’ accident at the same track. The helmet mirrored the same one the late racer used, and it also had his number 17 on it.
He later gifted the helmet to Philippe Bianchi and his family.
