Charles Leclerc “fine and fully focused on Imola weekend” amid robbery of his watch. Charles "fine and fully focused on Imola weekend".

Scuderia Ferrari Formula 1 driver Charles Leclerc faced the media on Thursday ahead of the 2022 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix and not at all surprisingly, the first questions from the reporters were directed at the incident which took place a few days ago, when Charles was the victim of a robbery: a $320,000 special edition Richard Mille watch was stolen from his wrist as he posed with fans in the Italian city of Viareggio.

The Monegasque driver confirmed that identifying the culprits who stole his watch on Monday is not going as “smooth” as has been reported in the media during the last few days. The fans had stopped Charles Leclerc, who was with friends, including personal trainer Andrea Ferrari, and he was posing for pictures when the incident took place.

According to reports in the Italian media, the Ferrari driver attempted to chase the thieves, which could be useful for the police investigation, as they hope to track the thieves using CCTV footage. While Charles said that finding the criminals was not going to be straightforward – he confirmed that this unfortunate incident would not affect his preparations for the Imola race this weekend:

“I won’t go too much into details, it hasn’t been a great experience. I cannot say much more than that. But obviously everything is going on with the police, and they are trying to find them. It hasn’t been as smooth as what I’ve read. But yeah, overall, I am fine and fully focused on the weekend. It won’t hurt me for this weekend.” – he said, ahead of the Emilia Romagna GP.

Charles Leclerc explained he was fully focused on continuing the strong start to the 2022 Formula 1 championship and further extending his championship lead at the Imola circuit, while at the same time urging his Ferrari team not to let the extra pressure of racing in front if the Tifosi affect its focus:

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“I’m very excited,” he said. “After the first three races, everything has gone our way, and we seem to have a very strong car for this year. Obviously to be at home for Ferrari, I know that in past years we had so much support here, and now to be here in that position, I’m sure it’s going to be special. But the most important thing for us this weekend is to not overdo things, which is easy whenever there is excitement, and whenever things are going well.We need to stay focused on our job, not try to do too much, and hopefully it will be a positive weekend.” – the Monegasque driver concluded.