Latest news with #Car16
Daily Mirror
23-05-2025
- Automotive
- Daily Mirror
F1 star handed Monaco GP grid penalty before qualifying even begins
Hampering Charles Leclerc at the Monaco Grand Prix is a sure-fire way to get the locals on your back, while the Formula 1 stewards also weren't too impressed with the man who did so One Formula 1 racer was handed a grid penalty for the Monaco Grand Prix – before qualifying for the famous race even began. The punishment came as a result of an incident in Friday practice which caused a collision with Charles Leclerc. It happened in FP1, which was briefly red-flagged as a result of the debris which was scattered across the Monte Carlo street track on the run down to the Loews Hairpin where the collision took place, Leclerc running into the back of another car. But the stewards have made it clear they did not believe the collision was the Ferrari driver's fault. Instead, Lance Stroll is the one who has been punished for moving across the track without warning, leaving Leclerc powerless to stop himself from running into the back of the Aston Martin. The clash caused extensive damage to both cars. Fortunately for Leclerc, most of the problems on his Ferrari were on the front wing which was easily switched out and he went on to set the fastest time of the session overall. But it was more costly for Stroll, who did not managed to get back out on track. TV images showed mechanics having to change a lot of damaged parts on the Aston Martin as a team spokesperson confirmed the Canadian's session was over. And it got worse later on Friday when the stewards confirmed they had found Stroll to be "wholly to blame" for the collision. "The stewards... determined that Car 18 [Stroll] cut across the path of Car 16 [Leclerc] at turn six, causing Car 16 to collide into Car 18. Car 16 suffered damage as a result," they explained. "The driver of Car 18 stated that although the team warned him of the arrival of Car 16, he did not hear the radio message and that led to the incident. We considered that Car 18 was wholly to blame for the collision. Car 16 was not in a position to avoid the collision that took place. In the circumstances, we imposed a one grid position penalty for the race." To make matters worse for Stroll, he also saw one penalty point added to his FIA superlicence for his role in the crash. He now has three to his name, with drivers who rack up a dozen within a 12-month period triggering an automatic one-race ban. The one-place grid drop means whoever qualifies directly behind Stroll on Saturday will rise by one place in the starting order for Sunday's race. That could be more significant than usual as it is notoriously difficult to overtake on the tight Monaco street circuit. Though a rule change for this year could spice things up with teams obliged to pit their cars at least twice on Sunday. F1 bosses hope it will lead to more changes in the racing order and raise the potential for more mistakes and strategy errors, making more exciting a race which has struggled to produce drama in recent years.
Yahoo
24-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Formula One Disappointment: Scuderia Ferrari Issues Official Statement
Read the full story on Backfire News While expectations for what Scuderia Ferrari HP could achieve this season have been high, so far reality has been harsh. After finishing fifth and sixth in the Chinese Grand Prix, both Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton were disqualified after FIA examined the Formula One cars post-race. For some fans, it was a slap in the face after a hard-fought Car 16 was too light, coming in 1 kg underweight, so he was first to be disqualified. In an official statement, Scuderia Ferrari HP blamed that on a one-stop strategy for Leclerc, resulting in his tires wearing excessively, which the team believes is why the car came in underweight. As for Lewis' Car 44, the rear skid wear was measured at 0.5 mm below the FIA limit for thickness. That might sound anal because it is, but rules are rules. The team said it 'misjudged the consumption by a small margin' and that resulted in the fault. If true, this means the two drivers weren't disqualified by any fault of their own but instead thanks to miscalculations by their team. Considering how Scuderia Ferrari is portrayed as well-oiled machine, these kinds of errors are shocking and troubling. In total, Ferrari lost 18 points because of the disqualifications. That puts McLaren squarely in the top spot for the Teams' Championship so far at 61 points ahead of Ferrari while Mercedes is 40 points ahead. Some have portrayed the 'errors' as signs Ferrari has been trying to cheat. But in its official statement, the team says it wasn't trying to gain an unfair advantage in the race, vowing to 'learn from what happened' and not repeat the errors. For what it's worth, Pierre Gasly of Alpine was also disqualified for his car being underweight. Now Scuderia Ferrari HP is looking forward to the Japan GP after these disappointing results in China. Hopefully the team and drivers bounce back. Image via Scuderia Ferrari HP
