Charles Leclerc to receive grid penalty in Brazil

Charles Leclerc

Leclerc to receive grid penalty in Brazil

A new power unit for Charles.

Martin Macdonald

Tuesday 12 November 2019 17:00

Charles Leclerc will receive a likely 10-place grid penalty at this weekend’s Brazilian Grand Prix after the implementation of a new 2020-spec power unit provided by Ferrari.

At the United States Grand Prix FP3, Leclerc suffered an engine issue and had to revert to al older spec unit for qualifying and the race on Sunday, when he finished fourth.

"Charles will get a new Power Unit there [in Brazil], as his was damaged on Saturday in Austin, which meant he had to use a previously used and less powerful version for the rest of the weekend," Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto said in his Brazilian GP race preview.

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"Fitting a new PU means taking a grid-penalty in Sao Paulo, but we should be back to our normal performance level and show some fighting spirit to finish the season on a high note.

"That will be important in order to confirm we are making progress with our car and to take some of that momentum into the winter work.

"I know that our drivers and the whole team are fully focused on that."

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Leclerc himself has brushed off the penalty, saying he is simply looking forward to competing on one of his favourite tracks - one which he always used to select when playing his Playstation!

"The circuit is really exciting to drive on," The Monegasque driver said.

"It’s a short lap but still features lots of different corner combinations paired with straights. I think the layout has changed quite a bit over the past decades until it reached its current shape.

"When I was younger, I actually always used to select it on my Playstation, so I’ve always been very fond of it!

"The weather in Sao Paulo can be changeable, which means that the conditions on track can vary from day to day and pose unexpected challenges to all teams, mixing things up."