Charles Leclerc insists he would “love to stay” at Ferrari for the foreseeable future but insists extending his contract beyond 2024 is not a “priority” at the moment. Leclerc joined Ferrari in 2019 from Alfa Romeo and made an immediate impression on the tifosi fanbase, winning their home Italian Grand Prix at Monza as well as the Belgian Grand Prix in Spa. After a few forlorn years, 2022 saw the Scuderia challenge at the top again – with Leclerc winning two of the first three races – before Red Bull stole a march and cruised to championship glory as Ferrari saw their tilt fade away due to reliability and strategic errors. This season has seen Ferrari, if anything, take a step backwards and as a result Leclerc has been linked with a move to Mercedes – even in a potentially astonishing swap deal with Lewis Hamilton – but the Monegasque driver was keen to emphasise his heart remains with Ferrari. “I have always loved Ferrari and I would love to stay,” he told the BBC. "I’ve always made it very clear that my goal is to try to be a world champion, but firstly with Ferrari. I know how difficult it is. We are not in the easiest situation. There is a big gap to fill to get to Red Bull’s level but Ferrari has helped me before I got into F1, believed in me and put me into the Ferrari seat very early on, and it’s always a team that I’ve loved. "My priority is to win with Ferrari and it is not my worry whether I won’t achieve it or whatever. We just need to work on the team and try to improve it as much as possible, and I hope that I can achieve that one day." Leclerc has a contract with Ferrari until the end of the 2024 season but insists a long-term extension is not in his or the team’s thinking right now. "Honestly, I am not in a rush,” he said. “I don’t think Ferrari’s priority is signing me at the moment, which is understandable because we are all just focused on trying to have the best race car possible as quickly as possible.” Leclerc has not won a race since last July in Austria, with his best finish this year two third-place podiums in Azerbaijan and Belgium. The 25-year-old is sixth in the driver standings on 99 points, a mammoth of 240 points behind runaway championship leader Max Verstappen. “We expected a good step forward [this year],” he added. "But unfortunately Red Bull had done twice the step, especially in the race, and that was just not good enough from our side. I don’t think we underachieved. I think just the targets were not the right ones." Leclerc and his team-mate Carlos Sainz will be eyeing a strong showing at Ferrari’s home race, the Italian Grand Prix, at Monza this weekend. Read More How does Max Verstappen’s win-streak compare to fellow record-holder Sebastian Vettel’s? F2 champion Felipe Drugovich to feature for Aston Martin at Italian Grand Prix Toto Wolff insists George Russell’s loss of form is a ‘myth’ How does Verstappen’s win-streak compare to fellow record-holder Vettel’s? F2 champion Felipe Drugovich to feature for Aston Martin at Italian Grand Prix Toto Wolff insists George Russell’s loss of form is a ‘myth’

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Rita Moreno has revealed the unique way she made friends after finding herself suffering from loneliness. Ahead of her 92nd birthday on 11 December, the West Side Story star opened up about her struggles with loneliness after she moved into a new home. In an interview with People published 28 November, Moreno recalled feeling “so sad” after moving from her house in California’s Berkeley Hills area to a new condominium. The Broadway alum admitted she felt so lonely that it was even “affecting [her] appetite”. It wasn’t until her daughter, jewellerly designer Fernanda Luisa Gordon, noticed something was wrong that Moreno decided to combat her loneliness. “I really didn’t understand what was happening,” she told the outlet. “I remember thinking: ‘I can’t go on like this.’ I’m in the most beautiful apartment in the world as far as I’m concerned, and this is happening. Why is this happening?” The 80 For Brady star said she used her years of “therapy” and “psychotherapy” to help her self-reflect, ultimately deciding that it was her recent move away from friends and family that was making her unhappy. Moreno, who has one daughter and two grandsons, explained that her new home made it difficult for her friends and family to visit. “So when we make plans to see each other, we have to make plans, they can’t just kind of drop by,” she said. “I was really lonely.” Moreno admitted that she was “fascinated” when it dawned on her that she didn’t actually know how to make friends because she “never had to seek people’s company”. “You know why? Because people have always come to me,” she added. When the Family Switch star finally decided to “meet some people” on her own, she went to the supermarket to do some shopping and met a “lovely” woman who she had previously seen at the store. “She had this big smile on her face and she recognised me, obviously, and we started to talk,” Moreno recalled. “I said to her: ‘Would you like to have lunch with me?’” According to Moreno, the woman was shocked when the Hollywood icon asked to have lunch with her but she ended up accepting the invite. “She sat down and she said: ‘Do you always pick people up like this in the market?’” Moreno recounted. “I told her the truth. I said: ‘No, but you always have struck me as such a lovely person. Since I’m new here and I don’t know anybody, I thought I’d take a dip.’” Since then, the woman has become one of many people that Moreno befriended, including those from her apartment building. “I’m so lucky,” she added. The Puerto Rican actor landed her breakout role of Anita in the 1961 movie musical adaptation of Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim’s original Broadway musical, West Side Story. She later won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for the role. Moreno also starred as a newly-created character, Valentina, in director Steven Spielberg’s version of West Side Story. In 1965, she married cardiologist Leonard Gordon, who later became her manager. They were married for 45 years, welcoming daughter Fernanda, before his death in 2010. In May, United States surgeon general Dr Vivek Murthy declared loneliness a public health epidemic, posing health risks as deadly as smoking a dozen cigarettes daily. In a report, Murthy stated that nearly half of US adults say they’ve experienced loneliness. The report also stated that loneliness can increase the risk of premature death by nearly 30 per cent, posing a greater risk of stroke and heart disease, as well as increasing a person’s likelihood for experiencing depression, anxiety, and dementia. The crisis was worsened due to the Covid-19 pandemic, as schools and workplaces shut down and people were required to quarantine and socially distance themselves. In 2020, Americans spent about 20 minutes a day in person with friends compared to 60 minutes daily just two decades earlier. “We now know that loneliness is a common feeling that many people experience. It’s like hunger or thirst. It’s a feeling the body sends us when something we need for survival is missing,” Murthy told The Associated Press in an interview. “Millions of people in America are struggling in the shadows, and that’s not right. That’s why I issued this advisory to pull back the curtain on a struggle that too many people are experiencing.” Read More Strictly’s Amy Dowden shares health update after being rushed to hospital Sam Thompson admits fears about ADHD and parenthood on I’m a Celeb Paris Hilton says using surrogacy was a ‘difficult decision to make’ Strictly’s Amy Dowden shares health update after being rushed to hospital Sam Thompson admits fears about ADHD and parenthood on I’m a Celeb Paris Hilton says using surrogacy was a ‘difficult decision to make’

A man working on construction for this November’s Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix has tragically died after suffering a “major laceration to the neck.” The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department were called to the Bellagio Fountains area on Saturday morning – at around 11:30am – after a worker was injured. The man, whose age has not been released, was transported to a local hospital but was later pronounced dead, as reported by ABC News. A spokesperson for the police confirmed the worker was involved in construction for the Las Vegas race circuit. The grand prix weekend is being held on the iconic Strip on 16-18 November. Further details are yet to be made public. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration will investigate the incident, police said. The Independent has contacted the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department and Formula 1 for further comment. Preparation for the Las Vegas race has seen numerous roads closed while construction takes place, with the project as a whole costing an estimated $560m. The 3.8-mile track passes a host of famous Sin City landmarks, including the Bellagio, Caesars Palace and the new MGM Sphere. F1 is returning to Vegas for the first time since 1982, when the Caesars Palace Grand Prix was held in the car park of the famous hotel. The race takes place at 10pm local time (6am GMT) on Saturday 18 November. Read More The rise of Oscar Piastri: A genuine rival for Lando Norris at last ‘Shocker of a race’: Christian Horner pulls apart Sergio Perez’s display in Japan Christian Horner reveals Max Verstappen ambition ahead of Japan victory

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Lando Norris snapped back after a reporter labelled Max Verstappen the British driver’s “BFF.” Norris and Verstappen are good friends and are regularly seen chatting and joking with one another in the paddock. Verstappen won 19 of the 22 races in the 2023 season while Norris – still searching for his first F1 victory – finished on the podium seven times without securing that elusive win. However, the McLaren driver reacted frostily when a journalist hinted after Sunday’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix that his relationship with the three-time world champion was closer than it actually is. “He’s not my BFF (best friend forever), don’t ever say that again,” said Norris. “We respect each other and we get along, kind of friends away [from the track], but that’s it. We just have a lot of respect for one another.” Norris has been linked with the second seat at Red Bull, though has a contract with McLaren until the end of the 2025 season. Sergio Perez has a contract at Red Bull which expires at the end of next season. Red Bull boss Christian Horner admitted in September that Norris was one of many drivers who the team are “keeping an eye on.” “Lando’s a great driver,” said Horner. “He’s a big talent, big personality and of course he’s one of those drivers that you keep an eye on. “But there’s many drivers that you keep an eye on as well. There’s a generation of drivers out there at the moment that have got a huge amount of talent.” The 2024 F1 season starts on March 2 with a Saturday night opening race – the Bahrain Grand Prix. Read More Carlos Sainz’s personal trainer links up with F1 rival Lewis Hamilton: ‘I had asked Mercedes for changes and they weren’t done’ Mercedes team member miraculously finds wedding ring in Abu Dhabi marina Michael Masi could return to F1 despite 2021 Abu Dhabi finale ‘Sexism, please! Do they have anything else?’ FIA boss denies misogyny accusations F1 fans spark chaos and launch bottles of prosecco in Abu Dhabi brawl

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