Ferrari’s
Charles Leclerc
bizarrely crashed out of the Miami Grand Prix sprint race… while driving to the grid.
Formula 1 is at the Miami International Autodrome this weekend, with the second sprint race of the season taking place on Saturday before qualifying for Sunday’s main event.
18-year-old Kimi Antonelli shockingly claimed pole for the sprint ahead of McLaren duo
Oscar Piastri
and
Lando Norris
, with Leclerc due to start in sixth ahead of teammate Sir
Lewis Hamilton
.
But in a shocking turn of events, heavy rain hit Miami in the build-up to the race, with plenty of standing water on the track as drivers took their cars round to the grid.
And amid the spray and chaos, Leclerc smashed his Ferrari into the wall at high-speed, badly damaging the car and while he tried to continue, it was clear the wheels and suspension were broken and beyond repair.
He pulled to the side to allow marshals to recover the stricken car but despite the heavy shunt seemed okay as he jumped out.
‘I’m so sorry. Yeah, I’m so sorry,’ the Monegasque said over the team radio.
Replays of Leclerc’s crash showed his Ferrari aquaplaned into the wall, with Hamilton criticising the team’s decision to put intermediate and the not full wet weather tyres on.
‘I don’t know how you put us out on inters!’ the seven-time world champion said on his way to the grid.
‘It is [an easy mistake to make] when you’re on a tyre that doesn’t suit the condition,’ 2009 champion Jenson Button told Sky Sports while analysing the shunt.
‘I understand what Ferrari are trying to do, but you can’t take a risk. On a surface they don’t know either, which is unbelievably slippery underfoot.
‘It’s a big mistake.’
The conditions were so bad that the sprint began under the safety car but drivers quickly complained of a lack of grip and visibility and the red flag was hastily brought out, halting the race for around 30 minutes.
On the restart, Piastri jumped Antonelli but it was Norris who emerged victorious after a chaotic sprint which also saw Max Verstappen crash into Antonellli in the pitlane.
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