Leclerc blames Monaco GP crash on major brake failure

Charles Leclerc says his late retirement from a podium finish in Sunday’s Monaco Grand Prix was caused by a severe brake issue on his Ferrari.

The local hero was running third when his race unravelled at the Noghes hairpin shortly after a safety car restart. Sliding into the barriers at the final corner, Leclerc immediately informed his team over the radio that the accident had not been of his making.

Later, after reviewing the data, the Monegasque revealed the extent of the problem he had been battling behind the wheel.

‘Three brakes not working’

According to Leclerc, the issue left his Ferrari operating with only one fully functional brake corner, creating an impossible situation around Formula 1's most demanding street circuit.

"Out of the four brakes, I had three brakes not working," Leclerc said. "So in a Formula 1 car, it's never a good thing.

"The front left was working well, the front right was half working, and the two rear brakes were not working at all. And when I say at all, it's that on data, there's no deceleration at all. It's like the calipers were not even in the car."

The problem emerged following a safety car period and rapidly deteriorated in the following laps.

The Monegasque described the situation as "a nightmare" and explained that despite trying various adjustments from inside the cockpit, nothing restored the braking performance.

"As soon as I did the safety car, three of my four brakes stopped working," he explained. "I could never switch them on again, nothing was working anymore.

“I tried to do many actions in the car to try and help it. The only solution I had was to not brake in the last corner, but I would have crashed in Turn 1. There was just no solution."

Ferrari already has an answer

The crash came at a particularly painful moment for Leclerc, who had been on course for a strong points finish before the failure struck.

While Ferrari continues to investigate the root cause, Leclerc suggested the issue may be linked to brake wear, a recurring challenge around Monaco's low-speed, high-braking layout.

"I don't know if it was a wear issue," said the Monegasque. "It's often a problem here. I don't know what it was, but there was a clear issue."

Asked whether he had ever experienced a similar problem during his career, Leclerc left little doubt about the severity of the failure.

"No, not to that extent. Surely sometimes it's a little bit tricky, but there it was just not possible to go around a corner."

Crucially, Leclerc says Ferrari already believes it understands both the problem and the remedy. Beginning with the next race weekend, he will switch to the same brake configuration currently used by team-mate Lewis Hamilton.

"The only thing I can say is that we have the solution in-house, and I'll go to the Lewis configuration from next race onward, which hopefully will be a step."

No doubts inside Ferrari

Leclerc also revealed that Ferrari's senior leadership had reviewed the telemetry and reached the same conclusion regarding the cause of the accident.

"Fred and Jerome [d’Ambrosio, Ferrari deputy team principal] saw the data, and I think it's very clear for everyone. I don't think there's any doubt," he said.

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The incident compounded a frustrating afternoon for Leclerc, while Hamilton's second-place finish elevated the seven-time world champion to second in the drivers' standings on 90 points. Leclerc remains fourth with 70.

Yet despite the disappointment of crashing out of his home race, Leclerc was able to identify one encouraging takeaway from a difficult weekend.

Asked whether there were any positives to carry forward, he replied: "That I'll have a solution for the brakes next weekend."

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