Zlatan Ibrahimovic, soccer legend and supercar enthusiast, got a chance to meet the Ferrari Formula 1 team, and he had a lot of pointers to give Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz on how to win.
Swedish soccer star Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s interests go beyond a soccer field. In fact, he’s a self-proclaimed petrol head, and his garage stores a lot of powerful models. For his latest birthdays, he has been treating himself to new cars. The list includes a Ferrari SF90 Stradale Spider, a Ferrari Monza SP2, and a Porsche 911 Targa 4S Heritage Design Edition.
Now, the AC Milan star got a chance to meet the Scuderia Ferrari Formula One team, Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz, at the brand’s headquarters in Maranello, Italy. Zlatan started his visit on the wrong foot. He gave Mattia Binotto, the Ferrari Team Principal, a shirt of AC Milan with his name on it, despite the fact that he is a fan of the rival team, Internazionale Milano.
Right before taking it to the track with Sainz, the two bonded over football. The Spanish driver admitted he tries to watch every game in the Champions League and proclaimed himself a “big fan” of the AC Milan striker.
The two took a Ferrari SF90 Stradale out for a spin, with Sainz behind the wheel. The Spaniard pushed the pedal to the metal and hit 260 kph (161.6 mph) on the straight. After that lap, Ibrahimovic asked for a “little break,” because his head was spinning. “Or else I will throw up,” he said.
After that short break, the striker didn’t shy away from taking his turn behind the wheel of the hypercar. Sainz advised him to “take it easy,” but told him “you know what the car is capable of, so you can try.” And try he did, using the 12-o'clock one-handed steering technique as he revved up the engine until he realized that the paddle shifters might come in handy when cornering.
As he tried it out, the striker jokingly commented on his “Ferrari on the pitch” nickname, and said “When you buy Ibrahimovic, you buy a Ferrari.”
He admitted to Leclerc that “I have cars, a lot of cars, but this is different.” The French racing driver introduced Ibrahimovic to the first racing car he won a Formula One race with and even admitted he plays “a little” soccer, but that his coordination on the field is not very good. Afterwards, they hopped in a Ferrari Roma.
And one of Zlatan's biggest pieces of advice on winning? Let the ball come to you, instead of running after it. Well, you can't wait for the car to come to you on the racetrack now, can you?
Imagine a Wenn diagram for cars and celebrities. At the intersection you'll find Monica, putting her passion for these fields and English-Spanish double major to work. She's been doing for the past seven years, most recently at autoevolution. Full profile
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