"Must be the water": Fans react as Charles Leclerc crashes out before the F1 Miami GP sprint

Charles Leclerc had a dreadful start to his Miami GP Sprint day as the Ferrari driver suffered a crash before the Sprint race on Saturday, May 3. Leclerc, who was on his way to the grid, lost control of his car on the wet track and hit the wall. Reacting to the incident, fans shared their reactions on social media.

Leclerc, who had an underwhelming sprint qualifying, would have started the Sprint race from P6, behind Mercedes' George Russell and ahead of his teammate, Lewis Hamilton. However, prior to the race, he suffered a crash.

The #16 driver's Ferrari suffered major damage because of the hit, enough to put him out of the Sprint race. Sharing the update on Leclerc, F1 on its official X account, wrote:

"Charles Leclerc hits the wall!! With rain falling heavily, Leclerc sustains heavy damage on his way to the grid after contact with the wall."

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As the post surfaced online, fans shared their reactions. Here are some reactions taken from the micro-blogging site X, formerly Twitter:

Reacting to the incident, a fan wrote, "Must be the water"

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Another fan wrote, "This season is a joke."

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"WTF. Can’t drive in the rain hahahahah," wrote a fan.

"Whyyy is he going that fast on his sighting laps?! In the wet…omgggg. We can’t catch a break," another fan wrote.

Another fan wrote, "On HIS WAY TO THE GRID???? the bar is lower than hell."

"Classic Ferrari under the rain," another fan wrote.

Leclerc missed the Sprint race, which was won by Lando Norris.

Charles Leclerc shared his verdict after underwhelming Sprint qualifying

Charles Leclerc let his feelings known after he had an underwhelming outing in the Sprint shootout on Friday, May 2. Even though the Monegasque driver qualified for the SQ3, the general pace on the Ferrari was poor, Leclerc felt.

Charles Leclerc (16) of the Monaco Scuderia Ferrari F1 Team at the F1 Grand Prix Of Miami - Source: Getty

"Bad," Leclerc said in the post-qualifying interview via F1, speaking about the session. "The lap was good, but the pace is just not at all there for now, so it is a bit annoying. It’s every corner really, it’s not like we are particularly weak in one type of corner.

“Yes, the slow speed seems to be a bit more of our weakness, but it changes from one weekend to the other, so it is just not great," he further added.

With Charles Leclerc out of the Sprint race, the driver and Scuderia Ferrari lost some valuable Championship points. Lewis Hamilton finished the Sprint in third place in the other Ferrari.

About the author

Sabyasachi Biswas is a passionate motorsport journalist for Sportskeeda, with a Master's degree in Mass Communication and Journalism. He has over eight years of experience in the field and has over 10000 published articles on the internet.

As a dedicated follower of motorsport, Sabyasachi watches events closely, ensuring his reports are thorough and supported by reputable sources. He is inspired by Max Verstappen’s fearless attitude and dreams of attending the Indian GP if it returns to the calendar. An ardent F1 fan over the years, he enjoyed watching Felipe Massa and Sebastian Vettel and is now following Verstappen's dominant journey on the track.

Apart from F1, he is a big-time NASCAR and football (also soccer) fan. Sabyasachi supports Kyle Larson of Hendrick Motorsports and Spanish club, Real Madrid.

He was a sub-junior level footballer and won inter-district quizzes and debate competitions back in school. A travel freak by nature, Sabyasachi likes to try different cuisines and learn about new cultures. When away from his keyboard, he enjoys soccer, geopolitics, and playing with Khushi & Ubbu - his adorable beagles.

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Edited by Tushar Bahl