Leclerc 10-place grid penalty big blow to Ferrari title hopes
F1 NewsFriday, 06 December 2024 at 12:31
Charles Leclerc will take a 10-place grid penalty at the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in a major setback for Ferrari's hopes of a first Formula 1 constructors' championship since 2008.
On Friday, Leclerc set the fastest lap in FP1 at Yas Marina but Ferrari then revealed they had to change the battery pack on his car, triggering an automatic penalty.
Ahead of the 2024 F1 World Championship finale, Ferrari are 21 points behind McLaren, last champions in 1998, with 44 still to be won on Sunday.
Leclerc, whose younger brother Arthur was also on track at the same time in the Ferrari usually driven by Carlos Sainz, lapped with a best time of 1:24.321 seconds.
McLaren's Lando Norris was second fastest in 1:24.542, followed by the Mercedes pair of seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton and George Russell.
Sunday's race will be Hamilton's last for Mercedes before joining Ferrari as Sainz's replacement.
Latest News
Loading
