Ferrari star Charles Leclerc has splashed out on a new 102-foot super-yacht, launching the exclusive Riva vessel with his influencer wife Alexandra Saint-Mleux just days after the Miami Grand Prix.
Monegasque driver Leclerc has enjoyed a strong start to the season this year, rising to third in the standings after nabbing podium finishes at the Australian and Japanese Grands Prix.
The 28-year-old also celebrated his civil wedding to Saint-Mleux two months ago, enjoying a prolonged honeymoon period after races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia scheduled for the spring were cancelled amid the war in Iran.
Instead, Leclerc and his new bride were able to spend time mulling their latest purchase – a boat by the Italian manufacturer Riva which the company handed them the keys to last week.
In footage circulated on the company’s social media page, Leclerc and Saint-Mleux were invited to their shipyard in La Spezia to tour the vessel, before the builders gave an inaugural speech to the workers assembled.
Saint-Mleux, as per tradition, then broke a bottle of champagne over its hull before they were videoed taking in the sea air on their new toy.
Charles Leclerc and Alexandra Saint-Mleux received delivery of their new super-yacht
The Ferrari driver’s influencer wife paid tribute to tradition as she smashed a bottle of champagne over the boat’s hull
Leclerc already owns a Riva yacht, a somewhat smaller 82′ Diva, and a 48′ Dolceriva, named Monza – the home of his storied constructor.
His latest £15million purchase has been named Sedici – ‘Sixteen’ in Italian – in a hat-tip to his racing number.
The third-highest paid driver on the grid, who is believed to command a salary of up to £39m including bonuses, chose the number for his birthday, October 16.
His new Corsaro Super is state-of-the-art, featuring four cabins to sleep 10 people, and a ‘beach club’ area including a swimming platform.
The yacht is also fitted with a number of fine interior details such as Poliform furniture, linens by Frette, Christofle tableware, Calacatta marble, and a Bang & Olufsen multimedia system.
The boat will be named ‘Sedici’ – Italian for 16 – in line with the Monegasque driver’s number
Both Leclerc and Saint-Mleux command an enormous following on Instagram, with over 28m followers between them
But as well as the finishes, and the boat’s capacity to reach a top speed of 28 knots, Leclerc was likely convinced by his team’s close relationship with Riva, who are one of Ferrari’s sponsors.
In the wake of Leclerc’s purchase, Riva have likely introduced themselves to a whole new audience, with both Leclerc and Saint-Mleux commanding enormous followings on social media.
A staggering 91,000 users liked the post of the pair enjoying their new boat, compared to the paltry 1,259 who reacted similarly to the company’s earlier offering.
