Scuderia Ferrari Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc has confirmed that Formula 1 stewards at the Japanese Grand Prix made the right decision by handing him a five-second time penalty at the Suzuka circuit on Sunday, despite the fact that Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto previously stated that he did not feel Charles’ move deserved a penalty.
Ahead of the Japanese Grand Prix, Charles Leclerc was aware that if Max Verstappen scored eight points more than him at the Suzuka circuit and six more tha his Red Bull teammate, the 2022 Formula One world championship was his.
After the race restart, Charles Leclerc seemed able to match the pace of Max Verstappen even after the switch to the Intermediate tyres after a first stint on the Extreme Wet tyres, but after just a few laps, the F1-75 car started to overheat the compounds, which left the Monegasque driver with no chance to keep up with the Dutchman. In addition to this, the Ferrari driver was left exposed to the attacks of Sergio Perez in the final laps.
Charles Leclerc was able to cross the line in P2 at the Suzuka circuit, but after cutting the chicane on the final lap. The stewards quickly reviewed the images and felt the Monegasque driver gained an advantage over Sergio Perez due to that move, handing him a five-second time penalty. As a result, Charles finished in third place and Max Verstappen mathematically secured his second Formula 1 world championship, given the fact that full points were awarded on a technicality.
Scuderia Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto admitted to being “surprised” at the timing of the decision, taken in just a few minutes after the end of the Japanese Grand Prix, especially after what happened seven days ago in Singapore with the call over a potential double penalty for Sergio Perez that could have resulted in a race win for Charles Leclerc.
Yet the Monegasque driver admitted in his post-race interview at Suzuka that stewards did in fact make the right call in dishing out the punishment.
“Well, I don’t have much to say. I did a mistake and tried to minimize it by trying to go straight. I was not aware this was the last lap but the five-second penalty was the right thing to do be honest.” – the Ferrari driver said.
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Charles Leclerc will now battle Sergio Perez for second place in the Drivers Standings: the Mexican has a one point advantage ahead of the Perez in the United States Grand Prix, the first of the last four races in the 2022 Formula One season.
The Monegasque driver also discussed about the tyres issues which did not allow him to challenge Red Bull at the Suzuka circuit, an issue that Ferrari hopes to solve for the 2023 F1 championship:
“We were very fast for four or five laps, but unfortunately, the race was a bit longer than that. The fronts were just gone after four or five laps, and after that was all about trying to survive until the end of the race. The end was extremely difficult. Obviously, Checo put in quite a bit of pressure behind and I was really, really struggling with with both of my front tyres. At the end, I ended up making a mistake. But we were really, really struggling today.” – Scuderia Ferrari Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc concluded.
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