Charles Leclerc's crash in the closing stages of Q3 at the 2023 Miami GP has left fans frustrated. The Monegasque was on the limit before losing the rear end of his car in sector one.
Leclerc's crash meant that Sergio Perez automatically got pole position, with Fernando Alonso and Carlos Sainz starting behind the Mexican on Sunday. Max Verstappen lost out the most as he was unable to set his first lap in Q3 after getting a snap of oversteer through sector one.
As a result, the championship leader will start Sunday's race in P9 and will have to fly through the grid if he wants to secure maximum points. The Monegasque, meanwhile, will start ahead of the Dutchman in P7 as he set an initial lap in Q3.
Verstappen's starting position for Sunday is disastrous for his championship hopes as his rival Sergio Perez will lead the pack into Turn 1. Also, Perez is only six points behind the Dutchman in the championship.
The Ferrari driver made a similar mistake in Friday's practice sessions, ending his session prematurely after putting his SF-23 in the Tecpro barrier at the exact same corner.
Fans expressed their frustration with the Ferrari driver by taking to Twitter, where they doubted his ability to go very fast without making mistakes. The Monegasque driver lost out on a lot of points to Max Verstappen in 2022's title battle, eventually having to settle for P2 in the standings.
One fan called Charles Leclerc "overrated" due to his tendency to crash, expressing their frustration with the Ferrari driver on Twitter.
Another fan commented that Charles Leclerc needs to work on his consistency if he wants to become a world champion in the future. The driver is perhaps the best qualifier on the current grid but often gets too hasty with his driving.
Another fan commented on Leclerc's all-or-nothing approach, highlighting that the driver either does extremely well or crashes out - and has no middle ground.
However, all is far from lost for Charles Leclerc as he will start Sunday's race in P7, ahead of his 2022 championship rival Max Verstappen. It will be interesting to see where the Monegasque driver finishes in Miami.