Formula 1: Ferrari's Charles Leclerc faces grid penalty at Grand Prix

Charles Leclerc was incapable to decorativeness the contention astatine the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix

Ferrari's Charles Leclerc volition person a grid punishment astatine this weekend's Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

Team main Frederic Vasseur said connected Wednesday that Leclerc's car had 2 problems with the electronics power portion (ECU) connected contention time successful Bahrain.

As drivers are restricted to 2 ECUs for a season, Leclerc volition beryllium penalised for going implicit his allocation.

Vasseur said that the ECU had a occupation erstwhile the car was started connected contention greeting successful Bahrain, and that Leclerc, 25, retired with a occupation successful the replacement part.

"It is thing we person ne'er experienced successful the past and I anticipation present it is nether control," Vasseur said.

"But unluckily we volition person to instrumentality the punishment successful Jeddah due to the fact that we lone person a excavation of 2 ECUs for the season."

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Vasseur said the contented would not restrict the show of the motor for the remaining races.

Leclerc was moving 3rd astatine the clip of his retirement, down the Red Bulls of Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez.

Ferrari volition person upgrades for this weekend's contention successful Jeddah successful the anticipation of closing the show spread to Red Bull seen successful Bahrain.

This was particularly ample successful the race, erstwhile Leclerc was losing an mean of astir 0.7 seconds a thigh to Verstappen successful the archetypal stint earlier the Dutchman backed disconnected having built a important lead.

Vasseur said: "I can't beryllium satisfied with the concern and I privation to bash a measurement forward.

"The characteristics of Jeddah are wholly antithetic compared to Bahrain and already it volition plaything a small much to what we person contiguous and we volition besides bring immoderate updates to Jeddah and I anticipation we volition bash a measurement forward."

He said that problems uncovering the close set-up for the car had restricted Ferrari's gait successful Bahrain.

"We had a batch of country for betterment successful presumption of drivability and the astir important is to enactment focused connected the existent concern to effort to get the champion from what we person today," Vasseur said.

"We volition bring improvements but archetypal we request to get the champion of what we person and we inactive person immoderate country for improvement.

"But support successful caput that Bahrain is not ever precise typical and we are inactive astatine the aboriginal signifier of the car and we request to person a amended knowing of it to effort to get the champion from the package."

He added: "Bahrain was not arsenic bully arsenic expected, and we person to react.

"Everybody is moving astatine their champion to hole the issues. We person to support the eyes unfastened that we had issues successful Bahrain successful presumption of reliability and we request to hole the contented of drivability.

"I americium not antagonistic astatine all. We had a wide investigation of what we did successful Bahrain, we person a agelong database of what we request to amended and we are connected it and I anticipation successful Jeddah already we volition beryllium capable to (make a measurement forward)."

Vasseur, who joined Ferrari successful January, rejected claims successful the Italian media successful caller days of disharmony astatine absorption level successful Ferrari, which were peculiarly focused connected the narration betwixt himself and main enforcement serviceman Benedetto Vigna.

"With Benedetto, we person a changeless collaboration," Vasseur said. "It is simply a precise bully set-up truthful far. We person ever unfastened discussions. He is supportive connected each azygous taxable and I can't kick astir this. It is much coming from gossip, but the collaboration with Benedetto is simply a precise affirmative one."

Ferrari's caput of conveyance show David Sanchez has near the institution and is believed to beryllium heading to different team, which has not yet been named but is said by media reports to beryllium McLaren.

Vasseur said employees leaving and joining teams was mean successful F1 but that helium did not expect immoderate different important changes this year.