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Charles Leclerc will be taking a new gearbox for his Ferrari SF-23 after his crash in the final stages of the qualifying session at the Miami Grand Prix led to his car getting damaged.
There will be no penalty of any kind imposed on the Monegasque as he is still under the allowed limit of gearboxes. At the start of this very weekend in Miami, it was revealed that Leclerc was taking a new gearbox and MGU-K unit, which was his second gearbox of the season.
The one after the qualifying session crash will mark his third. Since drivers are allowed to use up to four gearboxes every season without a penalty, he will start from his qualifying position of P7.
When Charles Leclerc was on his final flying lap in Q3, his pace throughout the session suggested that he would either start on the first or second grid in the Miami Grand Prix.
Unfortunately, his car rode the kerb on the exit of turn 6 and entry of turn 7, sending him into a massive spin, ultimately hitting the wall from his rear.
The turn at the Miami International Autodrome is a confusing one, as it was seen with multiple drivers. The Ferrari driver himself had a similar crash during the second practice session a day earlier, hitting the exact same wall, face first that time.
Will Charles Leclerc fear a penalty later in the season?
According to Formula 1 regulations, drivers are allowed to use up to four gearboxes on their cars before incurring a 10-place grid penalty. If, after that, drivers take yet another gearbox, they are given a 5-place grid penalty.
Charles Leclerc, after this, will be on his third gearbox. Although it is thought to be a precautionary move, as to not repeat the events of the 2021 Monaco Grand Prix, he has just one more gearbox to go for 19 races this season. There is a possibility that he might be looking at a grid penalty later in the season.
He was the first driver in the 2023 season to incur a grid penalty back in Jeddah, after exceeding the limit on the control electronics on his Ferrari following the DNF in Bahrain.
Charles Leclerc will also have a new MGU-K unit on his car, one of the four that are permitted by the FIA.
