Charles Leclerc’s apparent deliberate collision with Lando Norris during the Spanish Grand Prix practice session created controversy. During the third practice session before qualifying, the Ferrari driver was running a timed lap when he ran into Norris, who was going slowly on the racing line into Turn 7.
This crucial portion of the circuit allows drivers to position their vehicle for the sweeping left-right segment at Turns 7 and 8, which occurs just before they approach Turn 9’s rapid right-hander. Leclerc was forced to abandon his effort and used harsh expletives to express his dissatisfaction over team radio. He slid across Norris’s path as he approached, making impact with his McLaren and caused damage to the Briton’s front wing. Leclerc then asserted that it was an unintentional “misjudgment” of Norris’s position. Peter Windsor stated on the Cameron F1 podcast that he thought greater action was necessary when the stewards looked into the incident and issued a reprimand.
Peter Windsor criticizes FIA stewards harshly Windsor compared the FIA stewards’ decision to absolve Leclerc of responsibility to the 2017 Azerbaijan Grand Prix incident involving Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel behind the safety car, believing it to be a poor precedent.
At the end of FP3, what was all the fuss about with Lando Norris? He purposely crashed his car into Lando. What a ridiculous scolding he received,” remarked Windsor. The worst conceivable message we can give the next generation is to support senior Grand Prix drivers in engaging in that kind of behavior, which is one of the riskiest things you can do—not just that particular instance. It’s equivalent to giving Sebastian Vettel a wrap around the knuckles for crashing into Hamilton while driving behind the safety car for him to merely receive a reprimand.
Why was Charles Leclerc given just a warning? Article 33.4 of the F1 Sporting Regulations states: “At no time may a car be driven unnecessarily slowly, erratically, or in a manner which could be deemed potentially dangerous to other drivers or any other person.” The stewards looked into Leclerc’s possible violations of this rule.
The worst conceivable message we can give the next generation is to support senior Grand Prix drivers in engaging in that kind of behavior, which is one of the riskiest things you can do—not just that particular instance. It’s equivalent to giving Sebastian Vettel a wrap around the knuckles for crashing into Hamilton while driving behind the safety car for him to merely receive a reprimand.
Why was Charles Leclerc given just a warning? Article 33.4 of the F1 Sporting Regulations states: “At no time may a car be driven unnecessarily slowly, erratically, or in a manner which could be deemed potentially dangerous to other drivers or any other person.” The stewards looked into Leclerc’s possible violations of this rule. The stewards felt that “irrespective of any possible intent” the action was not “dangerous” but rather “erratic” under the prior precedents for comparable situations, after Leclerc admitted to them that he “misjudged” the location of his car.
Because of this, he received his first reprimand of the season instead of a harsh penalty. In a season, drivers are only allowed to receive four driving infractions before a fifth one automatically results in a 10-place grid penalty. In the same practice session, Lance Stroll and Lewis Hamilton were involved in a similar incident that resulted in a warning for reckless driving.
This is what led to him getting a reprimand rather than any severe penalty, which is his first of the season. Drivers can accrue four driving reprimands in a season before a fifth triggers an automatic 10-place grid penalty.
Lance Stroll was also handed a reprimand for erratic driving for a similar collision with Lewis Hamilton during the same practice session.