In a recent interview for gqmiddleeast.com, Scuderia Ferrari drivers Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz reflect on particular daily routines or rituals off track:
The GP kicks off in the Middle East in Qatar in November before travelling to Saudi Arabia and concluding in Abu Dhabi later in December. How do you prepare for your arrival in the Middle East? Does each race pose its own unique challenges?
Charles Leclerc: Racing in Qatar and Saudi Arabia will be exciting as the circuits there are new additions to our calendar. We all know these tracks on paper and from the simulator, but you only really get to know them fully once you arrive there and experience what the track feels like in terms of grip or how its characteristics suit your car in real life. This should mix things up and make for some fun racing. I also look forward to discovering these two new locations.
Carlos Sainz: This year is peculiar since we will be jumping from Brazil straight to Qatar. That represents a big challenge in terms of jet lag management. After all these years I have learned several tricks when travelling to avoid suffering too much jet lag. Things like light exposure, diet, when to take a coffee or other sources of caffeine and how much, etc. Apart from that, I really enjoy going to the Middle East at the end of the season as the weather in Europe starts to get cold and in places like Abu Dhabi, where we do the last race of the season, you can expect some very nice warm weather.
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Off the track, do you have a particular daily routine or ritual you follow?
Charles Leclerc: I spend a lot of time reviewing the past race weekend with my engineers and working on making progress in the areas where we see that there is a margin for improvement. I also have a daily training routine and a strict diet to stick to in order to stay in the best physical shape possible. To relax, I like to spend time with my family and friends in Monaco and do sports such as playing padel. I also play the piano, which is a big passion of mine next to racing.
Carlos Sainz: There is a certain routine between races. I like to keep in touch with my engineers, attend meetings at the factory or via zoom, go to the simulator and of course keep up the physical training! However, when it comes to proper downtime, I prefer to improvise a bit. I have many hobbies away from racing, most of them are outdoors.
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