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The Formula One stewards have explained the mitigating factor which saw Charles Leclerc get off lightly despite going off track while fighting with Lewis Hamilton for the lead of the Mexico City Grand Prix. Hamilton started the race on pole for the first time since joining Ferrari, but he was swallowed up by his team-mate who fought for the lead into turn one and maintained the challenge throughout the opening lap.
Leclerc eventually got through but ended up having to cut across the grass while defending against Hamilton. The race director warned drivers that they would take a dim view of such actions and, accordingly, both drivers were soon placed under investigation.
A five-second penalty was given to Leclerc for leaving the track and gaining an advantage. However, both Hamilton and Max Verstappen, who had taken advantage of the duel to slip in between the two Ferraris, expressed their surprise.
Hamilton was particularly furious about it. "He's got clean air and doesn't have to manage like the rest of us. He should just give the positions back," he complained over the radio, to no avail.
However, it was Hamilton's own actions which led to Leclerc being let off lightly, the stewards have now explained. In the official FIA decision document, the stewards explained the mitigating factor which saw Leclerc avoid a harsher punishment.
They wrote: "The stewards have determined that both cars entered turn four with excessive speed and therefore neither would have been able to make the corner on track, as demonstrated by the fact that car 44 [Hamilton] which was on the inside, had to go off track to make the corner.
"Car 16 [Leclerc] was therefore not entitled to claim the corner due to the excessive entry speed. The driver then completed an overtake whilst off track and, accordingly, this warrants a penalty.
"The baseline penalty guideline is 10 seconds. However, in mitigation is the fact that car 44 was also off track on the inside of car 16 and this occurred early in the first lap."
Leclerc had not pitted before the penalty call came and so he had to serve it when he came into the pit lane for fresh rubber. Verstappen followed the Ferrari in on the same lap and leapfrogged the Monegasque as a result, as Ferrari mechanics had to wait for at least five seconds before touching the car.
They maintained those positions until the race was red-flagged because of a hefty Valtteri Bottas crash on lap 46. The front-left corner of his Cadillac completely collapsed under the strain of heavy braking into turn one and the suspension snapped, leaving the Finn a helpless passenger.
Bottas hit the barrier had and, while he got out of the car under his own power and put a thumb up to fans, was taken to the medical centre. The crash led to an extensive delay as repair work was carrier out on the barrier he hit.
Big moments. Packed grandstands. A championship battle that’s heating up.
When the Formula 1 season delivers like this, watching from home just isn’t the same as being there when the lights go out.
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