Charles Leclerc avoided a penalty following his early Belgian Grand Prix contact with Oscar Piastri because FIA stewards judged that the McLaren driver was attempting an overtake that could not realistically be completed from his position. Although Oscar Piastri suffered damage to the right-hand side of his car, the officials concluded that Charles Leclerc had not deliberately forced him off the circuit and was entitled to move back towards the racing line.
The incident generated considerable debate because Oscar Piastri had already reached the white line and appeared to have nowhere else to go when the two cars made contact. However, the decisive detail for the stewards was that the Australian had not established sufficient overlap to earn the right to space on the outside approaching Turn 5.
Charles Leclerc and Oscar Piastri make contact while fighting for third
One of the Belgian Grand Prix’s most controversial moments involved Charles Leclerc and Oscar Piastri during the opening stages of the race. It was not the only incident to attract attention, with Lewis Hamilton also receiving a five-second penalty following contact with George Russell, but the clash between the Ferrari and McLaren drivers prompted particular discussion.
After examining the incident, the stewards classified it as a racing incident and decided to take no further action. That allowed Charles Leclerc to avoid a penalty that could have had a significant effect on the remainder of his race.
Had the Ferrari driver been sanctioned, he would most likely have had to serve the penalty during his pit stop. That could have dropped him behind Max Verstappen and cost him the position Ferrari had gained by making the most of its decision to wait for a Virtual Safety Car before stopping.
Oscar Piastri suffered the greater consequences from the contact. As well as losing time by running slightly deep after the impact, the McLaren driver sustained substantial damage to his car.
According to McLaren’s initial analysis, the damage cost Oscar Piastri between five and ten points of aerodynamic load. It also further unbalanced the car on the side that was already being subjected to the greatest stress.
How the Charles Leclerc and Oscar Piastri contact unfolded
The sequence of events was relatively clear. As they approached the braking zone for Turn 5 while fighting over third place, Charles Leclerc defended his position and gradually moved Oscar Piastri towards the white line.
The overhead replay showed that the McLaren driver had no additional room available. Moving any farther towards the edge of the circuit would have required Oscar Piastri to brake while riding over the raised kerb. The two cars consequently made side-to-side contact. Given the standard the stewards had applied to the first-lap collision between Lewis Hamilton and George Russell, Ferrari feared that Charles Leclerc could also receive a penalty.
Such a decision would have had a knock-on effect on both Ferrari drivers’ races, with each of them potentially required to serve a penalty during a pit stop.
Oscar Piastri feared the incident could become a major crash
Oscar Piastri blamed Charles Leclerc for the collision over team radio. The McLaren driver had been forced into evasive action because he feared the situation could develop into what he described as a “huge accident”.
“I lost the side part, or whatever it’s called. I lost pieces of my car, and I don’t even know where I was supposed to go,” a surprised Oscar Piastri said. “I was equally surprised that nothing happened in terms of a penalty. Obviously, a small contact had big consequences for me. It could have had very serious consequences for both of us, but that’s how it went.”
Oscar Piastri’s frustration was understandable because he had reached the white line and did not have another obvious escape route. His only alternative would have been to brake while moving onto the kerb, which could itself have created further risk.
Why the stewards considered Oscar Piastri’s overtake impossible
Why, then, was Charles Leclerc not penalised? According to the stewards’ explanation, the episode was not assessed simply as contact between two cars travelling along a straight. Instead, it was treated as an overtaking attempt that Oscar Piastri was not considered capable of completing under the specific circumstances.
“On the approach to Turn 5, Car 81 moved to the outside in an attempt to overtake Car 16,” the FIA stewards’ report stated. “Car 81 had achieved a partial overlap with Car 16, but the front axle of Car 81 was not ahead of that of Car 16, and there was no possibility for Car 81 to complete the overtake from that position.”
The FIA’s overtaking guidelines state that, for a driver to complete an overtake around the outside, the attacking car must be at least ahead at the front axle of the car it is attempting to pass by the apex of the corner.
After reviewing the footage, the stewards determined that Oscar Piastri was not in a position to extend the braking phase and attempt to pass Charles Leclerc around the outside. As a result, the McLaren driver was not considered entitled to the racing line.
Stewards rule Charles Leclerc did not deliberately force Piastri off
Oscar Piastri nevertheless had to lift when Charles Leclerc moved towards him, which contributed to his surprise that no penalty was issued. The Australian was already at the white line and had no further conventional space available in which to avoid contact.
However, the stewards concluded that Charles Leclerc had not deliberately squeezed Oscar Piastri beyond the edge of the track. Instead, they believed the Ferrari driver was simply moving back towards the normal racing line while holding the right to choose his trajectory.
“Car 16 did not deliberately crowd Car 81 beyond the edge of the track,” the stewards wrote. “Car 16 followed the racing line before the entry to Turn 5, moving slightly to the left to set up for the corner, and side-to-side contact occurred between the two cars.”
“Given the circumstances, the stewards determined that no further action should be taken.”
The ruling therefore centred not only on the contact itself, but on the relative positions of the two cars and whether Oscar Piastri had earned the right to space on the outside. Because the McLaren’s front axle had not moved ahead of the Ferrari’s, the officials considered Charles Leclerc entitled to return towards the ideal line, resulting in the incident being treated as a racing collision rather than a punishable offence.
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