Ferrari finds "no serious damage" to Leclerc's gearbox
Ferrari has found that Charles Lechler's gearbox caused "no serious damage" in its Monaco Formula 1 qualifying crash, but a final decision will be made on replacing it on Sunday morning.
Lechler topped Ferrari's 1st poll for 18 months after topping qualifying for the Monaco Grand Prix on Saturday.
But the session ended under a red flag after LeClear crashed on his way out of the swimming pool, preventing any other car from improving his leptime & inadvertently giving him a pole.
Lecler admitted after the session that he was concerned that the accident had damaged the gearbox on his Ferrari SF21 car, which could result in a grid penalty if a change was needed.
Ferrari issued a statement on Saturday evening saying it had completed its preliminary investigation on Lecler's gearbox, & although no major damage was found, it would only decide whether to replace it on Sunday morning.
A brief statement from Ferrari said, "Initial inspection of the gearbox in Charles Lechler's car did not cause any serious damage."
"Further investigation will be done tomorrow to decide if the same gearbox can be used in the race."
The news would come as some welcome relief for Ferrari, but team principal Matia Binotto said after qualifying that it would not pose any risk to credibility.
"No, we wo not gamble," Binotto said.
“I think what is important for us after such qualification is to try to maximize the number of points for the championship, & obviously to maximize we need to finish the race.
"So reliability is important, reliability remains a priority. If we have any doubt, we will definitely replace it and fix it."
Should Lechler be forced to change the gearbox, he would fall to sixth on the grid, giving Red Bull's Max Verstappen a boost to the pole.
Any demotion would also replace Valtteri Bottas, Carlos Sainz Jr., Lando Norris and Pierre Gasly, who qualified in the front three rows.
Lechler was left sweating for news about the state of his gearbox after the crash, admitting that he felt "quite a bit of crap" after the incident of throwing a pole of fear.
"I am just waiting for the gearbox and that's it," he said. "For now, I can not enjoy the qualifications I want."