Miami GP result changes as Charles Leclerc handed monster penalty | F1 | Sport
Charles Leclerc has been handed a whopping 20-second penalty after the Miami Grand Prix having been found guilty of breaking the rules on the final lap of the race. The Monegasque was on for a podium finish until he spun and hit the wall, causing damage to his Ferrari which led to him limping slowly to the finish line.
He was passed by Oscar Piastri, who snatched the final podium place for him, while George Russell and Max Verstappen also overtook. Leclerc crossed the finish line sixth, but was soon placed under investigation for the number of times he had gone off track while trying to wrestle his damaged car to the end of the race.
He was investigated for leaving the track and gaining an advantage multiple times for all the corner-cutting he was forced to do, and also for driving a car in an unsafe condition. While the stewards decided to take no further action for the latter, they chose to give Leclerc a drive-through penalty for the number of times he left the track.
As the punishment was given after the race, that has been automatically converted to a 20-second time penalty. It means Leclerc has been dropped to eighth place in the final classification, elevating his team-mate Lewis Hamilton up to sixth while seventh place has now been inherited by Franco Colapinto.
The stewards explained: “Car 16 [Leclerc] spun on the last lap at turn three and hit the wall but continued on track. The driver informed us that the car appeared fine, save that the car would not negotiate the right hand corners properly. Given this problem, he was forced to cut chicanes on the way to the chequered flag.
“We determined that the fact that he had to cut the chicanes (i.e. to leave the track) meant that he gained a lasting advantage by leaving the track in that manner. The fact that he had a mechanical issue of some sort did not amount to a justifiable reason.
“We accordingly impose a drive through penalty on Car 16, given the number of times the car left the track and gained an advantage. We also considered whether there was an additional breach in continuing to drive a car with an obvious and discernible mechanical issue. We determined that there was no evidence of there being an obvious of discernible mechanical issue. We therefore took no further action in relation to that potential infringement.”
Max Verstappen also received a five-second penalty, having been found guilty by the stewards of having crossed the white line denoting the pit exit earlier than allowed during the Grand Prix. However, that punishment makes no difference to his result as the Dutchman keeps P5.
