Charles Leclerc could take engine penalties at Belgian GP - Reports

Charles Leclerc could be forced to take engine penalties at the Belgian GP this weekend. According to reports, Ferrari have brought a revamped and upgraded power unit to Spa. If Leclerc takes on a new power unit, he will be taking one beyond his allocation, which would lead to penalties.

In that case, he will have to start the race from the back of the grid. That would hamper his chances of challenging Max Verstappen and Red Bull this weekend.

It would not be the best start to the second half of the season after the summer break. Talking about the summer break, Leclerc said during the press conference on Thursday that it was much needed. He used the downtime to go on holidays after a season full of 'highs and lows'.

"I needed it," said Leclerc. "The first half of the season has been full of highs and lows, so loads of emotions. There’s lots of accumulation of emotions, which leads to being tired. So, I was quite happy to go on holidays, and I used these three weeks as best as possible with my family and friends. It was just great."

Leclerc trails defending champion Max Verstappen by 80 points in the championship race. Asked about his approach in the next few races, the Ferrari driver had no qualms admitting that surmounting the deficit could be difficult. However, he added that he still harbours championship hopes, saying:

"Well, I think we will take it one by one, as a team. But, for sure, we have to maximise every opportunity that we have ahead, and I still believe in the championship. Of course, it’s going to be a very difficult challenge. But I will believe in it until the very end."

There was a picture taken during the summer break that was thought of as a sign of solidarity by the team. Leclerc said that the team had not been able to do it the last two seasons because of COVID-19. He said:

"The picture was actually something we did in 2019 that we couldn’t do in 2020 and 2021 because of COVID reasons. But it’s something that we just do with absolutely all the factory, all the people involved with the Formula 1 department, which is very nice because you can finally see faces and speak with them directly and thank them for the support they’ve given us and the work they’ve done in 2020 and 2021 when we were going through these tough times with the performance of the car."

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Whoever puts together the better weekend wins - Charles Leclerc

Charles Leclerc was quite open about what needs to be done going forward. The Ferrari driver talked said that both Red Bull and Ferrari have had comparable pace this season. Also noting the resurgence of Mercedes, the Ferrari driver harped on the need to put together a 'great' weekend:

“It’s whoever puts the perfect weekend together, because between Red Bull and ourselves, there is very little. Maybe sometimes we are a tiny bit stronger; sometimes they are a tiny bit stronger; now there is also Mercedes that are coming into the fight, which is nice. But in the end, the one who wins just puts a great weekend together, so that is where we’ll find the difference between the two teams, I think.”

Leclerc possibly starting from the back of the grid in Spa could be detrimental to Ferrari's chances of a strong showing this weekend. It remains to be seen how things unfold.