From the race car to the Vatican: Ferrari boss Elkann presented Pope Leo with an original steering wheel from Charles Leclerc’s Formula 1 car.
During a private audience at the Vatican, Pope Leo XIV received a Formula 1 steering wheel used by Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc in a race. Ferrari President John Elkann presented the gift—along with a model of the SF90 XX Stradale.
A video published by Rome Reports shows Elkann, accompanied by his wife Donna Lavinia Borromeo, handing the steering wheel to the Pope and explaining that it is an original part.
“A steering wheel… so it’s really been used,” Elkann said as the Pope examined the part more closely. “You just need to connect it to a car,” he added, pointing to the quick-release system on the back. “So this is a real steering wheel from a real car?” asked the Pope. “It’s real. It was actually used,” confirmed Elkann.
He then presented him with a model of the Ferrari SF90 XX Stradale, a car owned by Leclerc: “To remind you of your passion for driving,” said Elkann.
The Vatican already has Ferrari gifts
It is unclear whether the two gifts will be publicly displayed in the Vatican after this meeting. However, the Pope was visibly delighted. But it is not the only Ferrari steering wheel in the Vatican:
The Ferrari steering wheel driven by Michael Schumacher in 2003 is on display in the Carriage Pavilion (Padiglione delle Carrozze). It bears the inscription: “Il volante della F1 Campione del Mondo a Sua Santita Benedetto XVI, pilota della cristianita” (“The steering wheel of the F1 World Champion to His Holiness Benedict XVI, the ‘pilot of Christianity’”). It was presented to Pope Benedict XVI on December 6, 2005, by the then Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo.
Benedict XVI also received one of only 400 Ferrari Enzo cars, which he later auctioned off, with the proceeds going to the victims of the tsunami in Southeast Asia.
The Pope shows the Ferrari boss his car
After the handover, those involved left the building, where Pope Leo showed the Ferrari boss his Jeep—a brand that, like Ferrari, belongs to the Stellantis Group, which is also chaired by John Elkann.