Leclerc hit with Miami post-race penalty for chaotic final lap

Charles Leclerc has been handed a 20-second time penalty following the Miami Grand Prix for leaving the track multiple times on the final lap of the race.

The Ferrari driver spun on the final lap soon after being overtaken by Oscar Piastri for third place, and hit the wall in the first sector before continuing to try and reach the checkered flag. Leclerc damaged his left steering arm, meaning he struggled in right-handed corners and cut a number of them on the way to the finish before being passed by both George Russell and Max Verstappen.

After crossing the line in sixth place, Leclerc has now been demoted to eighth by a drive through penalty being converted into a post-race time punishment.

“Car 16 spun on the last lap at Turn 3 and hit the wall but continued on track,” the stewards’ decision read. “The driver informed us that the car appeared fine save that the car would not negotiation the right hand corners properly.

“Given this problem, he was forced to cut chicanes on the way to the checkered flag. We determined that the fact that he had to cut the chicanes (i.e. to leave the track) meant that he gained a lasting advantage by leaving the track in that manner. The fact that he had a mechanical issue of some sort did not amount to a justifiable reason.

“We also considered whether there was an additional breach in continuing to drive a car with an obvious and discernible mechanical issue. We determined that there was no evidence of there being an obvious discernible mechanical issue. We therefore took no further action in relation to that potential infringement.”

Leclerc’s penalty drops him behind both Lewis Hamilton and Franco Colapinto in the final race result, giving Colapinto the best finish of his Formula 1 career to date with seventh place.

Verstappen also received a post-race time penalty as he was cited for crossing the pit exit line after his pit stop, but the five-second punishment does not impact his finishing position due to Leclerc's penalty.