His number 16 has become iconic, but it wasn’t Charles Leclerc’s first choice: behind it lies a curious story that starts with Kimi Räikkönen and ends with a little bit of math…
Today, the number 16 is inseparable from Charles Leclerc — who officially turns 28 today. It’s printed on his Ferrari, his race suits, his caps, and in the minds of fans. It’s hard to picture the Monegasque with any other number. Yet when he arrived in Formula 1, 16 was not his original pick.
Leclerc’s first choices… weren’t 16!
At the start of his Formula 1 career, “The Chosen One” had one number in mind: 7, his lifelong favorite. But when he made his debut with Sauber in 2018, that number was already taken — by none other than Kimi Räikkönen, who had carried it since his Lotus days. So, no luck for the young Leclerc.
Plan B was 10, chosen for both personal and symbolic reasons — but that too was already claimed, this time by his close friend Pierre Gasly, with whom Charles shared much of his junior career.
From CL7 to CL16 — here’s the reason behind it
With his first two options unavailable, Leclerc needed a third choice. That’s how 16 came to be — not randomly, but because it’s the day of his birthday, October 16th, representing a personal connection to his story. But there’s more to it. The number still carries a link to his favorite one: 1 + 6 = 7.
So in a way, Leclerc still managed to keep his lucky number close — just in a slightly different form. Forget “CL16”: deep down, Charles’ dream was to be… CL7.
