Big Leclerc crash brings early end to FP2 in Saudi Arabia
A big crash for Charles Leclerc brought an early end to the second practice session at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
The Ferrari driver was on a long run when he lost the rear at Turn 22 -- a high-speed left-hander -- and slid backwards into the barrier at close to 120mph. The impact heavily damaged the right-rear corner, which made contact with the wall first, before the whole right-hand side took the next hit.
Leclerc was able to climb out of the car unaided before being taken to the medical center for mandatory checks, as the impact triggered the G-force warning sensor on his car.
https://twitter.com/F1/status/1466839084639342597
The crash occurred with five minutes remaining, and the session was not restarted in order to allow the car to be cleared and barrier repairs to take place.
https://twitter.com/ScuderiaFerrari/status/1466843114631487493
It was the first major crash of the weekend for Formula 1, although Leclerc's crash was similar to that of American Logan Sargeant in his first Formula 2 session earlier on Friday. Sargeant spun on the entry to the same corner but at lower speed, and limited the damage to the rear of his car. He was able to take part in qualifying later in the day.
Chris Medland
While studying Sports Journalism at the University of Central Lancashire, Chris managed to talk his way into working at the British Grand Prix in 2008 and was retained for three years before joining ESPN F1 as Assistant Editor. After three further years at ESPN, a spell as F1 Editor at Crash Media Group was followed by the major task of launching F1i.com’s English-language website and running it as Editor. Present at every race since the start of 2014, he has continued building his freelance portfolio, working with international titles. As well as writing for RACER, his broadcast work includes television appearances on F1 TV and as a presenter and reporter on North America's live radio coverage on SiriusXM.
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