Stewards hand Leclerc major punishment after Miami GP investigation

The Monegasque driver had fought tooth and nail for a podium finish until the closing stages of the race, finding himself in a battle with Oscar Piastri, who ultimately secured the final spot on the podium, before later taking on George Russell and Max Verstappen.

After completing their investigation, the stewards decided to hand the Monegasque driver a drive-through penalty, adding 20 seconds to his final race time. As a result, the Ferrari driver drops to eighth place, with Lewis Hamilton and Franco Colapinto both gaining one position.

Leclerc then spun at Turn 3 on the final lap after making a mistake, as he later admitted himself, sustaining damage to the car that forced him to repeatedly cut the track before managing to bring the car home in a thrilling photo finish with Verstappen and Russell.

“Car 16 spun on the last lap at turn 3 and hit the wall but continued on track. The driver informed us that the car appeared fine save that the car would not negotiate the right hand corners properly,” the FIA document reads.

The stewards explained that Leclerc was forced to cut the chicanes on his way to the chequered flag due to the damage sustained on the final lap, but ruled that doing so gave him a lasting advantage by leaving the track repeatedly.

They also stated that the mechanical issue was not considered a justifiable reason, ultimately deciding to impose a drive-through penalty on Car 16 because of the number of times the track limits were breached while gaining an advantage.