#Ferrari confirm Charles Leclerc will be hit with grid penalty for Saudi Arabian Grand Prix

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Ferrari confirm Charles Leclerc will be hit with grid penalty for Saudi Arabian Grand Prix

Charles Leclerc will have his work cut out in this weekend’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix after his Ferrari team were forced to fit another control electronics power unit component, which in turn triggers a grid penalty. Ferrari replaced the Energy Store and Control Electronics on Leclerc’s engine before the season opening Bahrain Grand Prix. The Monegasque then retired when in contention for a podium behind the two Red Bulls. READ MORE: Leclerc calls on Ferrari to ‘understand what went wrong’ after painful Bahrain GP retirement As teams are only permitted to use two control electronics components per season without penalty, Leclerc’s move to a third for race two in Jeddah ensures he will have at least a 10-place grid drop this Sunday – and potentially more if they replace any other parts – and increases the chances of him taking a further penalty later in the season. “On Sunday, we had two different issues,” said Ferrari Team Principal Fred Vasseur when talking to selected media on Wednesday. “The first one was on the Sunday morning, when we did the fire up, and the second one was in the race. Unfortunately, it was two times the control unit, the ECU. “It’s something that we never experienced in the past. I hope now it’s under control, but we have a deep analysis on this. Unfortunately, we’ll have to take the penalty in Jeddah, because we have only a pool of two control units for the season.” After Baku last year, Ferrari were forced to run their engine at lower power to reduce the risk of failure. However a lot of work went into durability over the winter and while they encountered problems in Bahrain, Vasseur added they do not intend to reduce power in the coming races as a precaution. This feature is currently not available because you need to provide consent to functional cookies. Please update your cookie preferences 2023 Bahrain Grand Prix: Leclerc cries ‘no power!’ as he’s forced out of the race from P3 Leclerc heads into this weekend’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 25 points adrift of championship leader Max Verstappen – and while he was understandably down after failing to score in the season opener, Vasseur said he has no worries about the Monegasque’s mindset and motivation. “Charles was with us after the tyre test day on Tuesday, was at the factory on Wednesday morning,” added Vasseur. “We had a speech with the employees, where we were all together on stage. It’s obvious Charles is motivated, we have done one race of 23. READ MORE: Why Vasseur is ‘completely convinced’ that Ferrari’s car concept can compete with Red Bull “He’s full push with the team, trying to get the best for everyone. The penalty is not good news, but it’s not the end of the season. Let’s see what happens in Jeddah, and what could be the outcome, even with the penalty, but don’t imagine for half a second he could be demotivated. “He’s fully convinced, he’s working with us, pushing the team, pushing everybody in a positive way. And nothing else.” Leclerc finished second with the fastest lap in last year’s race in Jeddah, with the high-speed nature of the Saudi Arabian street circuit expected to play more to the strengths – principally it’s straight-line speed advantage – of Ferrari’s SF-23 car. via Formula 1 News https://www.formula1.com

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Ferrari make further power unit changes ahead of Saudi Arabian GP

Ferrari have made several more power unit changes in the build-up to the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, with both Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz taking on fresh elements. Earlier this week, Ferrari confirmed that Leclerc would be hit with a 10-place grid penalty for round two, having been forced onto a third control electronics component after his retirement in Bahrain. READ MORE: Ferrari confirm Charles Leclerc will be hit with grid penalty for Saudi Arabian Grand Prix On Friday, as cars rolled out of the pit lane at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit, documents issued by the FIA confirmed Leclerc’s control electronics replacement, along with a host of other substitutions. Indeed, Leclerc and team mate Carlos Sainz have taken on new internal combustion engines for the weekend, with Leclerc also getting a fresh MGU-H – as part of what the team has described as “a further precaution”. This feature is currently not available because you need to provide consent to functional cookies. Please update your cookie preferences 2023 Bahrain Grand Prix: Leclerc cries ‘no power!’ as he’s forced out of the race from P3 Meanwhile, Mercedes-powered McLaren have replaced a host of power unit components in Lando Norris’s car, following his own issue-affected Bahrain Grand Prix. At Red Bull, Sergio Perez has been given his second energy store and control electronics, along with a new gearbox case and cassette, and new gearbox driveline, gearchange components and auxiliary components. READ MORE: Leclerc remains confident that ‘something special is definitely possible’ in Jeddah despite 10-place grid penalty As it stands, Leclerc is the only driver who will take a grid drop in Jeddah for exceeding his power unit allowance, with the rest of the changes being made penalty-free. via Formula 1 News https://www.formula1.com

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Leclerc remains confident that 'something special is definitely possible' in Jeddah despite 10-place grid penalty

Charles Leclerc is set to take a 10-place grid penalty at this weekend's Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. And while he knows it's not been an ideal start to the season, following his DNF in Bahrain, the Ferrari driver is still confident that a special result in Jeddah is very much possible. While running in third place last time out in Bahrain, Leclerc stopped on track with a power unit issue, just after Ferrari had replaced the Energy Store and Control Electronics on his engine prior to the season opener. READ MORE: Ferrari confirm Charles Leclerc will be hit with grid penalty for Saudi Arabian Grand Prix Following an investigation into the issue, the Scuderia announced on Wednesday that they would be fitting Leclerc's SF-23 with another Control Electronics power unit component – giving him a 10-place grid penalty for the second race of the season. “It’s the way it is. It’s the beginning of the season. Of course it’s not the ideal start that I wish I had at the beginning, starting in Bahrain, but what can I do about it? Now we need to focus on what is ahead, what we can do to be a better team, to do better,” said five-time race winner Leclerc. “This weekend we are starting from the back foot, but our target is to try and do something special. I like this challenge of starting a little bit more on the back foot and trying to do something special and come back to the front as quickly as possible.” Leclerc was forced to retire in Bahrain with a power unit issue When asked whether his role has been to galvanise his squad since the DNF in Bahrain, Leclerc replied: “Well yes, because it’s only the first race of the season and we’ve still got many, many races to go and we still need to be fighting like crazy to be back at the top and keep pushing. “I still believe in it and of course we still need to all believe in it because it’s only the first race. So, it hasn’t gone as planned, and when it’s Ferrari [and a situation] doesn’t go as well as it should, then there are lots of voices and all of this around the team.” BARRETTO: How new Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur is attacking the toughest job in F1 Leclerc added: “But we need to be good at spending our energy right inside the team, pushing in the same direction to make a difference and come back stronger.” Even with the DNF, Ferrari, by their own admission, had struggled to match rivals Red Bull for pace in Bahrain. But when asked if that could change in Jeddah, Leclerc said: “It should suit us a little bit better. Sainz was also confident that Ferrari could bounce back in Jeddah “Bahrain is also a very specific track, so I hope the delta pace we’ve seen will not be the same here. But our car characteristics should fit a bit better at this track, so hopefully it will be the case. But something special is definitely possible in this car.” His team mate Carlos Sainz – who finished fourth in Bahrain – was also feeling confident about Ferrari’s chances in Jeddah, as he also cited the different nature of the track as a reason for the Scuderia to feel upbeat heading into the weekend. IT'S RACE WEEK: 5 storylines we’re excited about ahead of the 2023 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix “I want to think so,” said Sainz, when asked if a podium finish is possible in Jeddah. “The track is completely different to Bahrain, the tarmac, high speed nature, [but is it] enough to beat the Red Bulls? “Given how tough and how competitive they were in Bahrain, it’s going to be extremely difficult. But I want to be more optimistic after Bahrain, and this weekend I feel we have a good chance to be back on the podium.” via Formula 1 News https://www.formula1.com