Hamilton: 'He has become a leader with a phenomenal team'

Lewis Hamilton is having a hard time this season. The Briton has to deal with strong competition from Max Verstappen who is still on top of the world championship standings. In the coming years he expects Charles Leclerc to fight for the world title as well, he told Motorsport.com.

The Monegas man has been getting everything out of his Ferrari this season. At the United States Grand Prix, Leclerc finished fourth, just ahead of Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas. In the World Championship he is in an excellent sixth place, just ahead of his teammate. The performance is therefore promising for the upcoming seasons.

"It's great to see how Charles has grown. He has become a leader with a phenomenal team," stated Hamilton. "Of course they have had a difficult period, but they are getting stronger now. They're getting faster again and climbing up the rankings, slowly they've caught up with the front teams."

Although Leclerc was unable to compete for the world title this season, Hamilton expects that to happen in the future. "He's still so young. He's on a wonderful journey and has the class to grow even further and become even stronger."