Charles Leclerc to Reduce Grid Penalty For Saudi Arabian GP

Charles Leclerc isn't starting the season with the best foot forward.

Charles Leclerc, the highly acclaimed Ferrari Formula 1 driver, has been hit with a 10-place grid penalty in the upcoming Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. This is due to the fact that Leclerc needs a third set of control electronics, which has already been used up.

During the Bahrain Grand Prix, Ferrari discovered an irregularity in Leclerc's power unit control electronics on race morning. The team then made a decision to replace it with a brand new set.

Unfortunately, on the 40th lap of the opening race, Leclerc had to pull over due to a loss of power. It was later found out that the control electronics box was once again the culprit for Ferrari's first DNF of the year in 2023.

At the factory in Maranello, the team confirmed that the unit would have to be replaced.

As a result of this, Leclerc will have to take a 10-place grid penalty in Jeddah.

Vasseur commented on the team's bad luck:

There were two issues, one on the Sunday morning when we did the fire-up and one in the race," Vasseur admitted.

"Unfortunately, it was two times the control electronics box and it's something that we never experienced in the past.

"I hope that now we have it under control. We have a deep analysis on this. But unfortunately, we will have to take the penalty in Jeddah because we only have a pool of two control electronics for the season."

This is the first power unit-related penalty of the season and will surely pose a challenge for Leclerc in the upcoming race.