“No further investigation was necessary”– Michael Masi reveals why Charles Leclerc wasn’t penalized for his first lap error

“No further investigation was necessary”– Michael Masi reveals why Charles Leclerc wasn’t punished for spoiling Pierre Gasly’s race.

On Sunday, Charles Leclerc had an unpleasant start to the race, as he got involved in chaos in the center of the pack at grid 1, and dragged himself down to P19, while also forcing Pierre Gasly to retire.

But no charge on Leclerc was announced by the stewards, as it was reckless driving, and technically forced another driver out of the race. But FIA race director Michael Masi believes that it wasn’t necessary to charge Leclerc for it.

“It was deemed one of those that, being a first-lap type matter, and considering the whole situation, it was noted that no further investigation was necessary,” explained Masi to reporters.

Gasly also brushed off the requirement to punish Leclerc after the race, as he believed that it wouldn’t have made a difference. If he was penalized during the race, it would have been better.

It was unfortunate

Leclerc in his explanation projected all the factors that contributed to the crash on Sunday before he made the incredible recovery drive to secure his P7.

“I was on the left of Pierre, I think he was trying to take the slipstream of the guys that were slight to his left and went to the left at the same time I was trying to get behind him,” said Leclerc.

“We just got surprised, both of us, and we had contact. It was very small contact that had very big consequences for both of us,” he added. In the end, it was a good result for Ferrari in Austria.

Leclerc’s marvelous drive gave Ferrari crucial six points on the table, and also fetched himself the driver of the day award. Now, next week, they will resume their fight against McLaren on the same track.

About the author

Tanish Chachra

Tanish Chachra is the Motorsport editor at The SportsRush. He saw his first race when F1 visited India in 2011, and since then, his romance with the sport has been seasonal until he took up this role in 2020. Reigniting F1's coverage on this site, Tanish has fallen in love with the sport all over again. He loves Kimi Raikkonen and sees a future world champion in Oscar Piastri. Away from us, he loves to snuggle inside his books.

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