Verstappen’s visor stuck in Leclerc’s wheel on the first lap
While the two contenders for the world champion title were starting from the 14th and 15th positions, Charles Leclerc was forced to pit under the safety car. This incident greatly hindered his climb back up the pack.
Leclerc’s hopes of climbing up the field at Spa-Francorchamps on Sunday, following his engine grid penalty, were shattered right from the start of the race. The Monégasque driver was forced to stop on the third lap after seeing smoke coming out of his right front brake duct. This information was communicated to his team via the radio.
At the pit stop, where he changed tires, Ferrari discovered that the problem had been caused by a torn visor stuck in their brake duct. This would have blocked the airflow to the brake disc and triggered massive overheating. This is something that, in the past, was enough to force cars to retire from races.
Although the detachable bands are quite uniform, it is almost impossible to distinguish one driver from another. The members of the Ferrari team have reviewed the onboard footage from the first lap to determine exactly where they came from.
Following the collision caused by Lewis Hamilton’s car slowing down in the pack, kicking up dirt, Verstappen was one of several drivers who had to remove a part of his visor.
The world champion later admitted: « There was so much dust. I could barely see anything just because of the previous section. I hope it’s not my fault. But there were a lot of things, honestly, people… They were all throwing things and it’s just really unlucky, to be honest, that this happened. »
After the Grand Prix, the Monégasque driver lost his second place in the world championship standings and now has a 98-point gap behind Verstappen. Sergio Perez, on the other hand, has taken over second place. The 2022 season is completely dominated by Red Bull, and it seems that nothing can stop them from winning both titles.
