Charles Leclerc forced to use old Ferrari F1 engine after Monza crash

Charles Leclerc is not using Ferrari’s upgraded Formula 1 power unit at the Spanish Grand Prix amid concerns it may be damaged after his heavy crash at Monza. 

Leclerc lost control of his Ferrari at the high-speed Parabolica at the end of the second lap of last weekend’s Italian Grand Prix before violently slamming into the barriers. 

While Leclerc emerged largely unscathed barring briefly suffering from blurred vision and neck pain, there are concerns his power unit picked up damage in the heavy impact. 

Leclerc is believed to be using the older-spec Ferrari power unit in Madrid, according to Sky Sports F1. 

As a result, Leclerc will be down on power compared to team-mate Lewis Hamilton, who has Ferrari’s new ADUO2 engine fitted in his SF-26. 

It is unclear how much of a handicap not having Ferrari’s new PU will be for Leclerc this weekend, but the 22-turn Madring is less reliant on power compared to Monza, where engine performance is crucial. 

It didn’t appear to have much of an impact in opening practice as Leclerc outpaced Hamilton to set the third-fastest time behind the Mercedes pair of George Russell and championship leader Andrea Kimi Antonelli. 

Leclerc provided insight into the after-effects of his huge crash at Monza when speaking to the media on Thursday. 

Asked if he had any doubts whether he would be able to drive in Madrid, the 28-year-old Monegasque replied: “No, not to that extent.

“I felt again the tightness and probably the bit of the pain in the neck on Monday. But in terms of vision it was very short. Right after I got into the [medical] car, one eye was, I don't know, maybe not working properly – but then it was fully fine after a few seconds, so I was not too worried.

“I knew it was a big shunt, and obviously that's never a good thing for the body, but straight away then I could see quite nicely.”

Leclerc added: “It was quite a big one, probably from outside it looked like a big one as well, but it felt also like a big one. Sometimes it can look quite big from outside but from the car it's fine.

“Going out I wasn't feeling so well, but actually it was just the shock. I did quite a lot of checks and quite a lot of treatments in the first two days, mostly for the neck because I felt a little bit tight, which I guess is normal, but now I'm fine.

“All the checks I did were fine – I cannot really tell you, honestly… in the medical world, every check of the neck is called way too difficultly for me to remember. I did many checks and everything was fine.”