At the Miami International Autodrome in Florida, Scuderia Ferrari Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc’s first and only free practice session was cut short after just a few minutes: what caused the spin for the Ferrari driver?
“It’s not a good start,” a well-known chef of would say regarding the start of the Miami weekend for the Monegasque driver. Before the program could even begin, Charles Leclerc ended his only free practice session in Miami after a curious spin. But why couldn’t Charles Leclerc get back on track?
The yellow flag preceded the red one. Just minutes into the Miami FP1 session, cameras lingered on the penultimate corner of the track, leading onto the long straight before the final section. Under the overpass, sideways, was Charles Leclerc’s red and blue Ferrari.
The Monegasque had just spun. The track still had little grip, the session had only just begun. With #16 on his first run, the Monegasque driver showed great aggression on the kerb of the tight turn 16. This, combined with the poor grip of the track, caused Charles Leclerc to spin. Once spun, the Ferrari driver was unable to rejoin the track in the right direction.
What prevented Charles from immediately restarting were the tight confines of turn 16, the lack of grip, and the heavy traffic behind the Monegasque.
Once stopped, Charles Leclerc’s SF-24 overheated the clutch. “What’s happening? Can I restart?!” Charles asked. His race engineer Xavi Marcos informed the Monegasque driver over the team radio: “The clutch has overheated. That’s why you couldn’t engage reverse.”
Charles Leclerc has effectively completed just three laps in the first free practice session for the Miami Grand Prix, wasting the chance to prepare adequately not only for this afternoon’s Sprint qualifying, but for the entire American weekend.
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