Leclerc given 20-second penalty for repeated cuts after spin
Charles Leclerc has been given a 20-second penalty that drops him to eighth in the Miami Grand Prix classification, for going off-track repeatedly after his last-lap spin.
Leclerc lost the rear of his Ferrari through Turns 2 and 3 while chasing Oscar Piastri in their fight for third place, and hit the wall with the left-hand side of his car as he gathered the spin up.
He was able to continue but with enough damage that he dropped almost 20 seconds behind Piastri and was caught and passed by George Russell and Max Verstappen.
In trying to get back to the finish line, Leclerc went off-track several times.
Leclerc went off trying to navigate the Turn 5 and 6 Esses normally, then having realised his problem, opted to cut several corners over the rest of the lap.
He used the run-off on the inside of Turns 8, 11 and the Turn 14/15 chicane – having crawled through the long Turn 12 right hander as well.
It was felt by the stewards that this act of repeatedly leaving the track gained Leclerc a lasting advantage and the fact he “had a mechanical issue of some sort did not amount to a justifiable reason”.
The 20-second penalty is imposed in lieu of a drivethrough, and drops Leclerc behind team-mate Lewis Hamilton and Alpine’s Franco Colapinto.
The stewards did at least clear Leclerc of driving in an unsafe condition.
They said that there was “no evidence of there being an obvious or discernible mechanical issue”.
That is despite the stewards’ own report referring to a mechanical issue, and Leclerc admitting the “significant” damage he inflicted included suspension damage as “I couldn’t really turn to the right anymore”.
The stewards’ own report also refers to a mechanical issue, but in the context of Leclerc claiming he had one to justify cutting the track - which they disagreed with.
The regulations require a driver must leave the track as soon as they can if their car has “significant and obvious damage to a structural component which results in it being in a condition presenting an immediate risk of endangering the driver or others, or whose car has a significant failure or fault which means it cannot reasonably return to the pitlane without unnecessarily impeding another competitor or otherwise hindering the competition”.
While Leclerc’s car was clearly damaged it was not structurally impacted to the degree of parts hanging off the car or scattering debris – which is typically the kind of threshold for this – and the fact it was the last lap also mitigated the consequences.
Verstappen's pit exit fumble
Max Verstappen has been given a five-second penalty for crossing the pitlane exit line during the Miami Grand Prix, although it doesn't change his finishing position.
Verstappen was noted for the potential infraction shortly after it happened, on his first and only stop during the lap six safety car.
However, at the time, the stewards said there was "limited video evidence to make a clear decision on whether an infringement had occurred", and delayed the decision until after the race to obtain more evidence.
It did find more evidence, and judged the "outside of the front left-hand tyre did cross the outside of the solid white pit exit line".
Five seconds was added to his time but he remains fifth, thanks to Leclerc's 20 second penalty. Without that, Verstappen would have dropped behind Leclerc.
Gearbox breaking saves Lawson
Another big incident in the race was Pierre Gasly being flipped into the tyre barrier by Liam Lawson at Turn 17 early in the race.
Lawson appeared to lock up before clipping Gasly, but it has come to light that Lawson's gearbox failed just prior to the move, and that Lawson has been absolved of blame as the gearbox is judged to be the cause.
So there's no further action for Lawson - who could have been looking at carrying a penalty over to Canada if he'd been assessed one, as he'd retired after the incident.
New finishing positions
1 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)
2 Lando Norris (McLaren) +3.264s
3 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +27.092s
4 George Russell (Mercedes) +43.051s
5 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +48.949s*
6 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +53.753s
7 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +61.871s
8 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +64.245s**
9 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +82.072s
10 Alex Albon (Williams) +90.972s
11 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +1 Lap
12 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1 Lap
13 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +1 Lap
14 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1 Lap
15 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +1 Lap
16 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +1 Lap
17 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +1 Lap
18 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +2 Laps
DNF Nico Hulkenberg (Audi)
DNF Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls)
DNF Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
DNF Isack Hadjar (Red Bull)
* five-second penalty
**20-second penalty
