Ferrari will send Charles Leclerc’s failed power unit back to Maranello for extensive investigations after the Monegasque retired from the Spanish Grand Prix.
Charles Leclerc’s championship hopes took a significant hit during the Spanish Grand Prix, with the Ferrari driver suffering a catastrophic engine failure while leading the race.
Comfortably out in front after a troubled first stint for Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, Leclerc slowed without warning on Lap 27. Slowing to a crawl, the championship leader was able to make it back to the pits as he took to team radio to exclaim, “Noooo!”
With Verstappen going on to win the race and lead a Red Bull 1-2, Ferrari and Leclerc have now lost the lead of both championships.
“I don’t know anything, more than what happened basically,” a rueful Leclerc told Sky Sports F1 after his retirement.
“I had no indications before and it just broke and then lost the power completely. So it’s a shame.”
📻 #Charles16 :“It’s ok, we’ll come back stronger.”
Xavi: “For sure”. ❤️
Unfortunately we had to retire #Charles16’s car due to a technical issue. #SpanishGP
— Scuderia Ferrari (@ScuderiaFerrari) May 22, 2022
Team boss Mattia Binotto said the troublesome power unit will be shipped back to the Scuderia’s base in Maranello for full analysis. It’s unclear for now whether the engine will be able to be kept in Leclerc’s pool for the season.
With three engines permitted for the season, losing an engine at this early stage of the campaign will likely trigger engine grid penalties for Leclerc as the year progresses.
Asked whether there’s been any indication as to what the problem was, Binotto said it’s unclear at this point.
“No, not yet,” he told Sky Sports F1.
“Obviously, there’s been a sudden power unit issue. Certainly a serious reliability issue, but the power unit will be [sent] back to Maranello, [it] will travel during the night and, tomorrow morning, we’ll disassemble…
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