Charles Leclerc and the controversial contact with Lando Norris in FP3: the Ferrari driver’s version. Charles Leclerc spoke about the controversial incident with Lando Norris during FP3 in Spain.

Charles Leclerc spoke about the controversial incident with Lando Norris during the final free practice session for the 2024 Formula 1 Spanish Grand Prix at the 4.657-kilometre Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on Saturday.

In addition to the qualifying session, where McLaren narrowly beat Max Verstappen’s RB20 by just 20 milliseconds, Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc were already making headlines earlier in the afternoon with their contact at the end of FP3, which sparked considerable discussion among fans and experts.

No intentional contact
Despite the images clearly showing the Monegasque’s SF24 sharply veering left, hitting the front wing of the MCL-38, the stewards decided to spare the Ferrari driver, “punishing” him only with a reprimand and a warning.

This decision was not well received by Lando Norris, who expressed disbelief while chatting with Max Verstappen in parc fermé after qualifying.

“My version is very simple,” Charles Leclerc explained to the media after the final free practice session in Barcelona – “Lando exited the pit lane, and I was behind on a flying lap. When he aborted his lap, I aborted mine too. I braked to pull alongside him and misjudged it. I didn’t want to obstruct the cars behind on the right, so I found myself a bit in the middle, with some frustration. I was looking in the mirror to avoid obstructing, and we collided, but it was mainly a misunderstanding.” – the Ferrari driver pointed out.

“When this happens, it’s always frustrating, but you never want to touch. Obviously, in FP3, the last thing you want to do is damage the car, especially my car, right before qualifying, so it’s never the goal.”

The Monegasque then provided an initial analysis of the weekend, after struggling to find the right setup during free practice and finishing only fifth in qualifying: “It was very difficult up until FP3. FP2 was extremely tough for me. In FP1, we had the old package. We had to compare the two cars, which was necessary. Today we changed substantially, not everything, but many things in the car, and in FP3, I immediately felt much more comfortable. However, the pace isn’t there.” – Charles Leclerc continued.

“In a way, I’m happy with the progress, with the feeling I’ve had from yesterday to today, which I believe will pay off in the race. I’m not happy and I’m disappointed with the car’s pace today in qualifying because we are further behind than we had anticipated.” – the Ferrari man concluded.

Source: f1ingenerale