Charles Leclerc hit with big Miami F1 Grand Prix penalty for repeated corner cutting

Charles Leclerc has been handed a 20-second time penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage on the last lap of Formula 1’s Miami Grand Prix.

Leclerc somehow avoided crashing out of Sunday’s race in Miami when he had a massive spin while battling McLaren’s Oscar Piastri for third place on the penultimate lap.

The Ferrari driver damaged his car tapping the wall as he recovered from the spin and cut several corners on his way to the chequered flag.

Leclerc lost further places to George Russell and Max Verstappen and crossed the line sixth.

However, the stewards deemed Leclerc had left the track on several occasions “without a justifiable reason” and gained an advantage.

They subsequently issued Leclerc with a drive-through penalty converted into a 20-second penalty, which was added to his race time.

It means Leclerc has dropped two further positions to eighth, behind Ferrari team-mate Lewis Hamilton and Franco Colapinto.

It marks a career-high finish for Colapinto, who inherits seventh.

Leclerc was cleared of driving his car in an unsafe condition, and for his late collision with Russell, which both drivers and the stewards agreed were "minor racing incidents".

Leclerc blamed himself for the poor end to his race, lamenting his "poor" decision-making. 

The stewards' full verdict 

"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 stewards said. 

"Given this problem, he was forced to cut chicanes on the way to the chequered 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 accordingly impose a Drive Through penalty on Car 16, given the number of times the car left the track and gained an advantage. 

"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 of discernible mechanical issue. 

"We therefore took no further action in relation to that potential infringement."