"I stood aside to say hello to him," Arthur Leclerc enjoyed his first time alongside his brother Charles

This is the beautiful story of the day. Two brothers riding in the same team during an official session in F1. It just never happened… until Friday… when Ferrari became the first to field a sibling. The Team had indeed a Monegasque accent in Abu Dhabi. Alongside Charles Leclerc, the team's holder, it was his little brother Arthur who became his ephemeral teammate for an hour. The latter in fact took part in the first free practice session of the weekend, replacing Carlos Sainz as part of the regulations requiring teams to run young drivers in EL1.

Eighteenth in the session dominated by his big brother, Arthur Leclerc knew that it was more a question of helping the Scuderia rather than showing what he was capable of. "It was Ferrari's day, not mine, because they have a championship to play for., he explained to French-speaking media in the Ferrari hospitality. Above all, I wanted to not do anything stupid and bring back good information. There was definitely emotion when I left the pits, it was great."

Debriefing after sharing the track in FP1 👌 #AbuDhabiGP 🇦🇪 #F1 pic.twitter.com/z25Aro04Xs

— Scuderia Ferrari HP (@ScuderiaFerrari) December 6, 2024

At the end of the session, the two brothers offered a superb image, side by side, greeting each other. “I saw him in my rearview mirror, on the last lap, Arthur said. I was pushing, I was on a race simulation lap. He was pushing even harder… and when the checkered flag came, I moved to the side to say hello, obviously. It’s always special to experience these emotions as a family.” A moment that he verbalized into his radio, slipping to his engineer that he had just greeted his brother.

The two Leclerc brothers on the track. © Florent Gooden / DPPI

The youngest of the family believed at one point that he would never see Charles on the track, the leader of the Scuderia having experienced some technical setbacks on his car, condemning him to miss the first part of the session. "I saw that he was taking a while to get on track, but knowing that we had different run plans, I told myself that it was normal. After thirty minutes, however, I told myself that it would be good if he got in the car (laughs). He was able to finish the session, and we were able to do it together… it was great."

Family formation 😍

Charles and Arthur return to the pits after making history in FP1 #F1 #AbuDhabiGP @ScuderiaFerrari pic.twitter.com/Ipxjk3FoDz

- Formula 1 (@ F1) December 6, 2024

Modesty, however, prevented the two brothers from finding the words to explain their feelings, but that did not stop them from fully enjoying this historic moment. "It was more emotions than words., assured Arthur. He asked me if I was happy. It was moving, a special feeling, at least for me… he is more used to it (laughs)! The family was there. It was a very special moment. We are not really demonstrative all together but we think no less of it.

ALSO READ > Charles Leclerc penalized on the starting grid of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix