F1 News
Ferrari expected Leclerc's grid penalty in title battle: 'Not a surprise'
Charles Leclerc will start the last Grand Prix of the season with a 10-place grid penalty, after Ferrari had to change the Energy Store (ES). The Italians expected for a while that a grid penalty might have, team principal Frederic Vasseur explained.
"No, it was not a surprise," Vasseur told Sky Sports. "We had been monitoring it for one or two events and knew it was on the edge. We decided to make the change before the start to avoid a DNF and missing the session." Indeed, there was a chance the Energy Store would lead to Leclerc's car to be retired either in practice, qualifying or the race. That would be especially hurtful for the Scuderia, given they are fighting for the constructors' title against McLaren.
Ferrari currently trail the Woking-based team by 21 points, but the fact that Leclerc is not starting inside the Top 10 also hurts. "It makes things harder, especially since even without the penalty, scoring 21 points more than Mercedes was already statistically difficult. That said, nothing is impossible. We’ll stay focused and try to maximise our points from this situation," continued the team principal.
Vasseur on Arthur Leclerc
Arthur Leclerc made his Formula 1 debut in FP1, together with his brother Charles. A historical moment in the competition, as two brothers have never driven together for the same team in the same session. How did Arthur do on Friday morning according to Vasseur?
"He did a good job. Throughout the season, he has been fully committed to the simulator, and this was a chance to reward that effort with track time." That also led to a unique problem. "Their voices are exactly the same, which made it hard to differentiate who was speaking over the radio. It added a bit of difficulty to managing the situation."
The decision to put Arthur Leclerc in was purely down to the young Monegasque's performance. " While it was emotional for their family, the decision wasn’t made for emotional reasons. Arthur earned this opportunity through his commitment and performance in the simulator," the Frenchman concluded.
This article was written in collaboration with Corwin Kunst
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