Charles Leclerc Recalls 'Special Memories' of Godfather Jules Bianchi

Charles Leclerc has shared intimate details of the personal relationship he had with his godfather, Jules Bianchi, ahead of the 10-year anniversary of Bianchi's passing. Bianchi tragically died on July 17, 2025, from injuries sustained during the 2014 Japanese Grand Prix.

Why it matters

Bianchi was competing in his second F1 season with Marussia when his life was cut short. He was not only a close family friend, being best friends with Leclerc's older brother, but also a profound influence as Charles' godfather, setting him on the path to becoming a Ferrari driver.

The personal connection

Leclerc shed light on their bond, recounting personal anecdotes. "I've got some stories from that time, like the first horror movie I watched was actually with Jules," Leclerc told F1.com. "He didn't know I was pretending to be asleep. He was trying to make sure that I was asleep because he wanted to watch that movie with my older brother!"

Leclerc described Bianchi as a "genuinely nice person." He added, "He was very funny and he had his crazy moments when you got to know him very well. He was just always happy to help and very happy to have fun as well."

Shared beginnings in racing

Bianchi was a significant figure when Leclerc first began kart racing. Leclerc vividly remembers these moments: "The memories that are the clearest are probably when I was six or seven years old and it was the first time that I would be allowed to race a rental kart with him and my brother."

He recalled the unique circumstances: "Normally rental karts are for adults but his father was managing the track and obviously was letting us do things that maybe we were not too allowed. I looked up to him so to be racing with him, with my older brother, with his younger brother, and many, many other professional karting drivers at the time was incredible."

Leclerc concluded, "We had so much fun. We would hang out and wait for the karting track to close to the public so we could get on. Then we'd go crazy on track for hours and hours. These are probably the most special memories I have."