Charles Leclair said it would be a "good sign" for him to create the problem of driving Ferrari as Sebastian Vettel's partner.
The promising young driver was signed by Ferrari after just one season in royal races with the Sauber team, and Vettel said he expects pressure from the Monegasque this season.
Ferrari's new team leader Mattia Binotto said that Vettel has a much better chance of becoming the number one team than their newcomer Leclair, but added that he hopes to have such a "problem" as managing two top pilots.
Asked by a Motorsport.com reporter if he is taking time to adapt, or hoping to quickly cause Binotto's headaches, Leclair replied, “Obviously, I’ll be glad if I call up to this car as soon as possible! I'm also realistic. This is only my second season in royal races and I still have a lot to learn. There are many years of cooperation ahead. But I cannot hide the fact that I will do everything to be as ready as possible for the first race. If Mattia has a problem with two fast pilots, that is a good sign for me. But now I am concentrating on myself, trying to improve every lap I drive. This is a top team that is very different from the team I was on. Some adaptation is needed."
Leclair said he already sees the benefits of working with the four-time world champion.
“In terms of feedback from the pilot, Sebastian Vettel is very strong in this, - said Leclair. - He has very good technical knowledge, and at this stage I can improve my skills, but I also have to learn quickly. I spent the last five to six weeks at our base trying to better understand the whole structure of the team's work - and I came to the conclusion that this was one of my weakest points in the last year, but this time I was able to significantly work out and improve all of these moments.
Ferrari didn’t finish the first pre-season tests in Barcelona with a bad time, but it is still considered a benchmark for the rest.
This means Leclerc could arrive at the first leg of the Australian Grand Prix season as a contender for the victory, which will be his first career win in a Formula 1 driver.
“At this point, I'm not focusing on results,” he said. “If I focus on myself and try to do my best in and out of the car, I'm sure the results will come very quickly. I don't want to get it into my head that I need to win the first race. I just want to grow as much as possible before the first race, to feel as comfortable as possible in the team and driving the car, and then the results will come."
