Charles Leclerc and Ferrari already penalized in Brazil!
Charles Leclerc will start the Brazilian Grand Prix with a significant handicap on the starting grid. Indeed, Scuderia Ferrari is forced to change the Monegasque's engine, which will cost him numerous places in penalties at the start of the race on Sunday.
The Brazilian Grand Prix weekend hasn’t started yet and already bad news has hit the Ferrari garage on Charles Leclerc’s side.
The Monegasque, who had engine troubles during the last Grand Prix in Austin, will have to change his power unit and consequently be demoted several places on the starting grid for the Brazilian round.
Returned to an older specification of its engine in the United States due to an oil leak during testing, this solution did not satisfy Leclerc, who clearly lacked power and finished in an anonymous 4th place. To address this issue, Ferrari chose to replace the engine rather than repair it, even if it meant exceeding the allocated power unit quota for the season.
Mattia Binotto explains the choice that was made: « Charles will receive a new power unit because his car was damaged on Saturday in Austin, which forced him to use a less powerful and older version. Installing a new engine means taking a grid penalty in Sao Paulo, but we should return to our normal performance level and show a fighting spirit to finish the season on a positive note. This will be important to confirm that we are making progress with our car and that we are continuing this momentum into the winter. I know that our drivers and the entire team are fully focused on this. »
For the moment, it is still unknown which elements will be changed on the Monegasque’s power unit, and it is therefore impossible to know precisely the number of grid penalties he will have to endure.
