Stewards make decision on Leclerc F-bomb!
- Nicole Mulder
Just under a week after Charles Leclerc said 'f***' during an FIA press conference- the same word for which Max Verstappen was given community service in Singapore - the Ferrari driver finally had to answer to the stewards. The verdict has since been announced: Leclerc got away with the 'incident' compared to Verstappen and only received a fine.
Stewards judge Leclerc
After the Mexican Grand Prix, Leclerc joined the press conference. While recounting a moment in the race where he almost crashed, the Monegasque used the word 'f***'. Like Verstappen in Singapore, Leclerc did not mean any harm, but openly expressed what was on his mind. He did, however, immediately apologise to an FIA representative.
Initially, the stewards seemed to turn a blind eye, leading to outrage from Verstappen. However, in Brazil, Leclerc was still put on the spot by the stewards, some of them who were responsible for handing out the community service to Verstappen.
Meanwhile, the verdict is in: the stewards have fined Leclerc 10,000 euros, 5,000 of which is suspended on condition that there will be no further breach of a similar nature. This is because, according to the stewards, there were "mitigating circumstances". The stewards noted that Leclerc was asked a somewhat leading question that asked what he said to himself at the moment things almost went wrong. In response, he repeated that he said the word 'f***'. That the Monegasque immediately apologized at length was also factored into the verdict.