Her || Charles Leclerc

25. F1 Giggles & Tea... Espresso

"Hello, hello," the blonde hostess said into the microphone, opening the podcast.

The brunette smiled. "Hello, it has been a while," she said, looking at her friend. "The last time was around Austria."

"Phew, before the summer break. And a lot has happened since then." The blonde took a sip from her iced coffee. "First of all, we would like to apologise for our absence."

"Yes, absolutely."

"Some personal things happened, summer break, job switches... However, this podcast is about Formula 1, and oh, my god, there's so much tea to spill. Well, espresso. Because this podcast will be all about Monza."

"Welcome to F1 Giggles & Espresso."

The first twenty minutes were all about what had happened from Austria to Zandvoort: the famous Ferrari sandwich in Spielberg, the chaotic race in Silverstone, the DNF race in Hungary, the redemption race in Spa, and the wet race in Zandvoort. And, of course, the needed drama with some drivers (the partner drama during the holiday and the needed rumours of breakups).

"Let's dive into the Monza madness; it's not only Ferrari's home race, but also AlphaTauri's," the blonde said.

The brunette nodded, her eyes shining with excitement. "Even though it is also AlphaTauri's home race, I think all eyes will be focused on Ferrari. They might have a chance to do something this weekend."

"I have to say," the blonde said, leaning forward. "I am quite surprised to see the success of Ferrari so far." She was thinking about her next words. "There has been a lot of drama so far, but they are performing, and unlike last year, there is competition with Max."

"The drama," the brunette breathed. "I don't think I have seen a team with this much drama. The sneers during interviews, the behaviour on track... It almost starts to feel like a drama movie."

"But can I say how calm and polite Matilde stayed during those times?"

"Did she? Or was she just uninterested?"

The blonde raised an eyebrow, considering her friend's question. "You think Matilde was uninterested?"

"I mean, it's possible, isn't it?" The brunette shrugged. "She seemed so composed, like nothing fazes her."

"I think you have to do that because it is known that Ferrari came out of a mess. It was a rough start, but I think she's handling everything really well. Look at the crash at Spielberg; she just called Charles and Carlos back."

"I don't know..." The girl with the brown hair leaned back on her chair. "I mean, I don't think she is suited for the role." She crossed her arms. "She looks so uninterested, but also like she wants to be popular. I don't think she takes her job seriously. I think she's barely working, and I never see her really do anything on the track."

The brunette squinted her eyes, a thoughtful expression on her face. "Do you see Toto working?"

"Well, I feel like he is doing his job right. How often are there discussions in his team, what is shown in the media? And how many of them are affecting the team and the results?"

The blonde leaned forward. "But that's just it, isn't it? Perception versus reality. Just because we don't see Matilde working, which I believe is wrong because she is always working, doesn't mean she isn't. Perhaps her leading style is different from everyone else."

"I can't take her seriously. One moment, she's dancing on a Max song at Zandvoort, or she is constantly laughing, making comments, being popular. And the other moment she's not interested. What is her deal?"