One engine, one crash, one bill
It all started at the Parabolica. On lap two of the Italian Grand Prix, Leclerc lost his Ferrari on the way out of the corner and hit hard. Out at home. And a fresh engine in the wall.
That weekend, Ferrari had put in service its second approved power-unit update under the FIA’s ADUO rules. The engine was pulled from Leclerc’s pool before the Spanish Grand Prix. The Monegasque raced there with an earlier version.
According to the Italian edition of Motorsport.com, that engine is not finished. But it would apparently only be used in free practice. Which is basically the same thing: a new engine will be needed for the race, and new engines come with a grid price attached.
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Vasseur has already dropped the track name
Asked by Canal+ in Spain, Fred Vasseur did not exactly hide his hand. “We will see when we have to take an engine penalty with Charles, but I think Baku should suit us quite well,” said the Ferrari boss.
Leclerc is keeping his powder dry. “For now, from what I know, they are still checking it. We’ll see,” he said. And on the penalty itself: “I don’t know yet. If we can save it, great. If not, then probably a penalty at some point.”
The calendar leaves little room to manoeuvre. The Azerbaijan Grand Prix takes place next weekend, and there are only nine races left at most.
Baku, his favourite track and his favourite flop
The irony is brutal. Baku is the circuit where Leclerc stacks poles the way other people stack files. Four in a row between 2021 and 2024. And zero wins. His best finish there is still second place in 2024.
Starting deep on a narrow street track, where overtaking is still a slog despite the long straight, will not help him fix that stat. The 28-year-old sits sixth in the championship, 19 points behind Lando Norris. Lewis Hamilton, his team-mate, is fourth.
Leclerc is not the only one in this spot. George Russell is also waiting on a penalty, with Mercedes wanting to line it up with his ADUO update so he only serves one. Kimi Antonelli already sorted it out at Monza, where he won after starting from the back of the grid.
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