Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur has admitted that Charles Leclerc’s grid penalty for Sunday’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix came as no surprise to the team, as they had been closely monitoring the problematic energy store in his car for several races.
Leclerc’s weekend started on a rocky note when he was delayed in taking to the track at the start of Friday’s opening practice session.
Ferrari mechanics were seen working on his car, but shortly afterward, it was confirmed that the team had fitted a fresh – and third – energy store to the SF-24’s power unit, exceeding the annual allocation of two such components, triggering an automatic 10-place grid penalty for Leclerc.
The setback has inevitably dealt a significant blow to Ferrari’s already slim hopes of overtaking McLaren in the Constructors’ Championship, with the Italian outfit trailing its rival by 21 points heading into the season finale.
Speaking to Sky F1 after the session, Vasseur revealed that swapping Leclerc’s energy store was a calculated move by the team to avoid the greater risk of a race-ending failure.
“No, it's not a surprise, because we are monitoring it for one or two events, and we knew that we were on the edge,” Vasseur explained.
“We took the decision before the start because we don't want to have a DNF or even to miss a session.
“It is like it is now. We have to be focused on the weekend to try to get the best of the situation, including the penalty. We still all have to do something but let us focus on ourselves.”
©Ferrari
Despite the setback, Vasseur is urging Ferrari to remain focused on extracting every ounce of performance from the SF-23.
With Carlos Sainz starting from a better position, the team will look to the Spaniard to maximize points while Leclerc attempts to recover from the midfield.
“Even without the penalty, I think statistically it was difficult,” the Frenchman said. “Only one time this season we scored 21 points more than McLaren.
“It means that it was not an easy one. It's, for sure, even more difficult now with the penalty.
“But nothing is impossible. Let us focus on ourselves to try to get the best from what we have today, to score the maximum of points, and let's see where McLaren is at the end.”
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