Charles Leclerc’s Engine Nightmare: Inside the Power Unit Problem That Crippled Ferrari’s Canadian GP

The full scope of Charles Leclerc's engine problems disclosed amidst Ferrari's debacle

Ferrari and Charles Leclerc have disclosed the engine malfunction that sabotaged his performance at the Canadian Grand Prix.

Ferrari disclosed the significant impact a power unit issue had on Charles Leclerc's performance in the F1 Canadian Grand Prix.

Aiming to bounce back from a disastrous qualifying session where both Ferraris failed to advance past Q2, Leclerc encountered a problem with his engine during the initial phase of Sunday's chaotic and rainy race in Montreal.

Even though they were falling behind, Ferrari encouraged Leclerc to continue exerting effort. Following an initial risky decision to change to slick tires that didn't pay off, Leclerc ultimately withdrew from the race.

After the race, the driver from Monaco explained that he was more than a second slower than his competitors on the straight sections of the track and had to switch his engine settings 10 times per lap in an effort to address the problem.

"Leclerc expressed his frustration to Sky Sports, stating he was falling behind by 1.2 seconds on the straight stretches, which he found incredibly aggravating."

"Additionally, I was making around 10 adjustments per lap to the engine settings, which made the race incredibly frustrating as it resulted in being overtaken by everyone on the straightaways."

"In tight turns, your speed was impressive, and frankly, the initial pace was pretty robust, being only 1.2 seconds off. However, due to the engine problem, there was no way we could have improved the situation."

Ferrari's team leader, Fred Vasseur, verified that Leclerc experienced a power deficit of approximately 80 horsepower for roughly 15 laps due to the issue.

"Vasseur detailed that there was a problem with the engine, leading to a reduction of about 80 horsepower for roughly 15 laps."

"We had our fingers crossed for a red flag situation that would allow us to reset and restart. Unfortunately, the red flag didn't come, forcing us to make a pit stop which resulted in losing a lap. Essentially, that marked the end of the race for Charles since he fell a lap behind."

Carlos Sainz's race ended prematurely due to a collision with Williams' Alex Albon, worsening an already disappointing weekend for Ferrari as they fell further behind Red Bull in the global championships.

"Right from the start, the weekend hasn't gone well," Vasseur remarked. "I'm hoping this means we've gotten all our difficulties out of the way at this single Grand Prix and that we'll return in much better form for the Spanish race.

"We'll have a review session to analyze possible alternative strategies since the challenges we faced this weekend were unexpected, particularly given our strong performance in the longer runs on Friday. Given the length of the season, we anticipate both good and bad times, though I'm hopeful we won't experience many setbacks like this one."

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