Martin Brundle has revealed a potentially significant Ferrari simulator detail following Charles Leclerc’s violent 60G crash at the 2026 Italian Grand Prix. According to the former Formula 1 driver and Sky Sports analyst, a trusted paddock source told him after the Monza race that the Ferrari can show a tendency towards a small power spike in traction-limited situations, behaviour that has apparently also been reproduced in the simulator.
The information adds another element to an accident that began when Leclerc ran wide at Parabolica while defending fourth place from McLaren’s Oscar Piastri. The Monegasque initially managed to react when the rear of his SF-26 stepped out, but a second snap followed as the tyres regained grip, sending him heavily into the barriers and ending his home race after only two completed laps.
Martin Brundle reveals Ferrari simulator detail after Charles Leclerc crash
Brundle explained that he received the information after the Italian Grand Prix from somebody he described as a trusted source in the Formula 1 paddock. Crucially, he emphasised that the information had not come directly from Ferrari.
According to what Brundle was told, the SF-26 has a propensity to produce a slight spike in power during situations of this type, and the same characteristic has reportedly appeared during simulator running. That detail is particularly notable because Leclerc himself later reported noticing a difference in the way Ferrari’s engine delivered its power between the opening lap and the lap on which he crashed.
Before Monza, Leclerc had already discussed the role Ferrari’s simulator was playing in evaluating the team’s latest developments. He had explained that virtual running could not always provide a complete picture of Power Unit performance ahead of the Italian Grand Prix, where the Scuderia introduced its latest engine specification. More detail on those preparations can be found in Charles Leclerc’s assessment of Ferrari’s Monza engine and floor upgrades.
How Leclerc’s Parabolica accident developed
The crash unfolded during Leclerc’s early fight with Oscar Piastri for fourth position. Anticipating that the McLaren driver might attempt a move into Parabolica, Leclerc released the brakes earlier than he normally would as he approached the fast right-hander.
That allowed the Ferrari to carry additional speed into the corner, but it also pushed Leclerc away from the normal racing line and towards the green-painted area on the outside. Using that section of the circuit is not in itself unusual, as drivers can widen the exit of Parabolica to maintain more speed onto Monza’s long pit straight.
The critical moment came when Leclerc’s left-side wheels reached the drain incorporated into that area. Brundle explained that the left-rear tyre was on the painted strip containing the drain cover when the Ferrari began to slide.
Leclerc reacted in the conventional way by steering into the slide and initially appeared to catch the movement. However, when the front tyres suddenly recovered substantial grip, the car rotated sharply in the opposite phase of the incident.
With the SF-26 travelling at considerable speed on the exit of Parabolica, the Ferrari driver had virtually no time to deal with the second snap. He was sent directly towards the barriers, where the impact was measured at 60G.
Leclerc caught the first slide but could not save the second
Brundle’s analysis helps explain why the accident developed so rapidly despite Leclerc appearing to control the initial loss of rear grip. The Monegasque caught the first movement after running across the drain at the end of lap two, but the subsequent behaviour of the car proved much more difficult to manage.
His soft C5 Pirelli tyres regained grip after he had corrected the first slide. Once that happened, the Ferrari snapped again, and the combination of speed and proximity to the barriers left Leclerc without enough time or space to recover.
The reported simulator information therefore sits alongside the physical factors already identified at the corner. The drain contributed to the initial loss of traction, while Brundle’s paddock source suggested that Ferrari’s power delivery can also become sharper in precisely this type of low-grip situation.
That distinction is important: Brundle did not present the reported power characteristic as the sole explanation for the accident. The sequence also involved Leclerc’s defensive line against Piastri, his higher entry speed, the green-painted run-off area, the drain and the sudden recovery of tyre grip.
Charles Leclerc noticed different Ferrari power delivery
Leclerc later provided another relevant detail when describing what he had experienced from inside the cockpit. He revealed that the engine’s power delivery felt different on lap two compared with lap one, when he had not run as far across the outside of Parabolica.
That observation is consistent with the additional characteristic Brundle was subsequently told about, although the information available to him came from a paddock source rather than an official Ferrari explanation.
The wider behaviour of the SF-26 Power Unit has been a major technical focus around Monza, where energy deployment and traction are especially important. ScuderiaFans has been following those developments in its dedicated Ferrari technical analysis coverage.
Leclerc briefly suffered vision problems after 60G impact
The scale of the accident was evident immediately afterwards. Leclerc appeared visibly shaken and spent a brief period by himself at the side of the circuit before the medical car reached him.
He later revealed that his vision in his right eye had briefly been affected by the impact. A haze appeared following the crash, although Leclerc confirmed that the problem cleared shortly afterwards.
Brundle similarly observed that the Ferrari driver appeared shaken and was probably winded by the collision but otherwise seemed largely intact. At the time of his assessment, the former F1 driver expressed hope that Leclerc would be fit for the following race weekend in Madrid.
The Italian Grand Prix retirement was a painful conclusion to Ferrari’s home event for Leclerc, but the circumstances surrounding the accident remain especially interesting from a technical perspective. What initially appeared to be a loss of control after touching a drain involved a rapid sequence of changing grip levels, steering correction and, according to information relayed to Brundle, a Ferrari power-delivery characteristic that had already appeared in simulator running.
For further updates on Leclerc’s condition, performances and season, ScuderiaFans’ Charles Leclerc coverage follows the Monegasque throughout the 2026 Formula 1 campaign.
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