Ferrari F1 insider Rob Smedley has a fresh new take on why Charles Leclerc might have crashed out of the Italian Grand Prix on Sunday.
The 28-year-old Monegasque exited the Scuderia’s home race in terrifying fashion when he went flying into the Parabolica barriers on Lap 2 with a sickening 60G impact.
Mercifully, Leclerc is okay after the frightening crash, having complained initially of problems with his vision.
Much of the post-race analysis put the focus on what some experts and fans believe is a propensity for Leclerc towards unforced errors, but former Ferrari race engineer Smedley believes something else might have been to blame.
He feels Leclerc’s issues may well have stemmed from that controversial Lap 1 contact with team-mate Lewis Hamilton.
Heading into the chicane at turn one, the British star threw his car up the inside to try and pass his team-mate at the start, but this left him on the outside for turn two.
Then, as the two Ferraris tried to get through the next corner, Hamilton was left with no room and forced onto the gravel and kerb, causing him to lose multiple places.
Puncture May Have Caused Leclerc Crash
Smedley, speaking on the High Performance Racing podcast, explained:
“I think he had a puncture. I think he got a puncture when he hit when they clashed wheels down at turn one. I think he got a right rear puncture. Probably some hairline crack in the wheel.”
Smedley also explained why a Leclerc puncture from that Lap 1 skirmish may not have been immediately evident.
“It’s probably quite hard to see because what happens in the first lap is the tyre pressures always increase a lot. You start from okay they’re in blankets, but there’s nowhere the energy that the car puts in. So over the first three to five laps, the tyre pressure goes up quite a lot.”
“So if you’ve got a slow puncture it [the pressure] can be still going up. I’ve had this before. So you don’t really notice it.”
“So I think he could have had a puncture – I think it’s so hard to go off there. When you’re doing like 240km an hour, you’ve got like 2000 kilos of downforce.”
Now all eyes turn to the new Madring track this weekend as Leclerc and Ferrari bid to atone for last Sunday in Monza.
The street circuit should suit their SF-26 car more than the long straights of Monza.
Leclerc reports that he is okay after that horrific crash, and should be fit to race this weekend.
There is another boost for the Scuderia with the engine on his car reportedly still intact despite Sunday’s big impact.
That means he should avoid the grid penalty which taking a new engine in Madrid would involve.
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