Scuderia Ferrari has been the only team other than Red Bull to win a race in the 2023 season and it was not Charles Leclerc. The Italian Constructors were hoping for a good season in 2023, but reigning Champions Red Bull and Max Verstappen took the fans by storm by winning every single race except the Singapore Grand Prix in the 2023 season so far.
In the United States GP in Austin at the Circuit of the Americas, a pole could not translate to a win for Ferrari poster boy Charles Leclerc, and team principal, Fred Vasseur took the blame for the mishap, saying “With Charles, we chose the wrong strategy and compromised his race.”
👉 Fred Vasseur: “Elbette bugün için pişmanlıklarım var: pole pozisyonundan başlayarak yarışı altıncı bitiremezsiniz. Carlos açısından oldukça iyi bir yarıştı ancak Charles açısından, tek Pitstop doğru bir seçim değildi, onun yarışını stratejiyle batırdık.” pic.twitter.com/wcPTQmctUl
— Ferrari News TR (@ferrarinewstr) October 22, 2023
While everything had proceeded favorably for Carlos Sainz of Ferrari, it was understood that the team had made a strategy blunder for Charles, which had a negative impact on the result.
He continued “We asked them to switch positions so that Charles could save some time against George Russell.” Fred Vassuer later on admitted that there were regrets, as the team had begun in pole position, and the fourth and sixth positions did not bring satisfaction.
Why was Charles Leclerc disqualified at the United States GP?
Even though the Monegasque finished the race in fifth place, just behind Red Bull’s Sergio ‘Checo’ Perez, he, along with seven-time World Champion Lewis Hamilton, who finished second, was disqualified after the race.
Following the checkered flag at the Circuit of The Americas, Max Verstappen celebrated his strange 50th win of his career. Jo Bauer, the FIA Technical Delegate, and his team carried out their routine post-race inspections.
Bauer notified the stewards that Hamilton and Leclerc’s skid blocks did not satisfy compliance criteria a little under two hours after they crossed the finish line. At roughly 7:15 p.m. local time, the Briton and Leclerc were disqualified from the United States Grand Prix standings, allowing Lando Norris to move up to P2 and his teammate, Carlos Sainz, to secure a podium slot in P3.
BREAKING: Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc have been disqualified from the 2023 United States Grand Prix for a technical infringement#F1 #USGP pic.twitter.com/HHNlf5urLW
— Formula 1 (@F1) October 23, 2023
Both Mercedes and Ferrari agreed that the FIA Technical Team’s measurement was valid, attributing the significant wear on the skid pads to the peculiar mix of the rough track and the Sprint race schedule, which limited the time allowed to set up and test the cars before the race.
The action continues at the Mexican Grand Prix next week, even though the Champions are crowned for both trophies. There are small differences that can be covered up in the mid-table for both constructors and drivers. Mercedes will be trying hard to keep Ferrari off its tail and McLaren and Aston Martin will follow suit for 4th place in the constructors standings as the end of the season draws nearer.