Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc will suffer a penalty of at least 10 positions on the starting grid of the Saudi Arabian GP, scheduled for next Sunday, due to the replacement of the control unit on his single-seater.
This was confirmed by the official Formula 1 website, recalling that the team had already replaced the Energy Store and the control electronics on Leclerc's engine before the Bahrain GP and the second replacement inevitably leads to a penalty, to be defined on the basis of the entity intervention, because the regulation provides for only two control units for the entire season.
"We had an ignition problem on Sunday morning and a second problem in the race, again with the ECU.
It had never happened before, it was the subject of an in-depth analysis, but unfortunately we'll be penalized because the regulation only provides for two ECUs
for the 'whole season'
.
Thus the Ferrari team principal, Frederic Vasseur, explained the problem that the team is facing on Charles Leclerc's SF-23, forced to retire in Bahrain and a run-up race in Jeddah.
However, Vasseur assured that the Monegasque "is motivated and let's see what can happen to Gedda even with the penalty. But that's not why he's demotivated or anything like that, he's convinced and is working with us pushing the whole team. He's supporting everyone in a way positive", he said, later saying he was optimistic about the fact that "in Saudi Arabia we can take a step to be closer to Red Bull on a track that is different from Bahrain. It's not a question of the car's potential. I think it will be
a completely different story and throughout the weekend
we can take a step forward now that I know the situation perfectly."
