Why Ferrari's Charles Leclerc Is Taking a 10-place F1 Grid Penalty for Saudi Arabian Grand Prix

• Ferrari encountered reliability issues in Bahrain, where Charles Leclerc finished 19th.

• As hard as it is to believe, Ferrari is using the third different Control Electronics unit on its car this week, triggering a 10-place grid penalty.

• The penalty will be assessed following Saturday's qualifying in Saudi Arabia.

Formula 1 is heading into only its second race of a record-breaking 23-event 2023 season but already Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc is already dealing with a grid penalty.

Ferrari encountered reliability issues in Bahrain when it fired up Leclerc’s SF-23 prior to the race, forcing the team to install a second Energy Store and Control Electronics on the car. They are two of the six components that comprise the power unit and each driver is limited on the number of each parts they are permitted to use per season.

Leclerc then suffered a failure during the race, forcing him to retire from third place, and Ferrari’s post-race analysis determined that he must take on a new Control Electronics for this weekend’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. As only two CEs are allowed per driver per season Leclerc taking on a third CE means he will incur a 10-place grid penalty from wherever he qualifies on Saturday.

The issue was a failure that Ferrari has never experienced and the team expressed confidence that the fault has now been remedied. It is nonetheless another setback for Leclerc after a deeply frustrating start to the 2023 season.

Ferrari faced a chasm to Red Bull in race pace in Bahrain while Leclerc’s premature exit means he is already 25 points behind Verstappen. Taking on fresh power unit components so early in the year also raises the likelihood of further grid penalties later in the season. It is a particular blow given how engine reliability was a key area of work for Ferrari during the winter break on account of its 2022 failures—a weakness it was confident preseason that it had addressed.