Charles Leclerc handed massive penalty hours after Miami GP as fans in disbelief

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc received a post-race penalty following the Miami Grand Prix on Sunday.

For the third race in a row, Kimi Antonelli finished fastest as the Mercedes driver extended his lead at the top of the drivers’ championship with an emphatic victory in Miami.

The 19-year-old Italian fended off Lando Norris to move 20 points clear of team-mate George Russell, who could only manage fourth behind Oscar Piastri.

At one stage, Antonelli became embroiled in a battle with Ferrari’s Leclerc before Norris and the Italian pulled away from the Monégasque.

Meanwhile, despite spinning on the first lap, Red Bull’s Verstappen managed to recover to finish in a season-high fifth place.

Hamilton secured sixth, with seventh-placed Franco Colapinto ahead of Leclerc in eighth.

Leclerc handed post-race time penalty

After a disappointing showing for Leclerc, he received another blow following the race.

The stewards gave the 28-year-old a post-race time penalty after he was judged to have committed three separate offences.

Leclerc was called by the stewards after he tapped the wall following a last-lap spin.

He was then noted for driving a damaged car in unsafe conditions, with the Ferrari man leaving the track several times during a battle with Russell.

Leclerc was handed a 20-second time penalty for leaving the track “on several occasions without a justifiable reason”, which was added to his race time, meaning he dropped to eighth despite initially finishing sixth.

Findings from the stewards read: “Car 16 spun on the last lap at Turn 3 and hit the wall but continued on track.

“The driver informed us that the car appeared fine, save that it would not negotiate the right-hand corners properly.

“Given this problem, he was forced to cut chicanes on the way to the chequered flag. We determined that the fact he had to cut the chicanes (i.e. to leave the track) meant that he gained a lasting advantage by leaving the track in that manner.

“The fact that he had a mechanical issue of some sort did not amount to a justifiable reason. We accordingly impose a drive-through penalty on Car 16, given the number of times the car left the track and gained an advantage.

“We also considered whether there was an additional breach in continuing to drive a car with an obvious and discernible mechanical issue. We determined that there was no evidence of there being an obvious or discernible mechanical issue. We therefore took no further action in relation to that potential infringement.”

Verstappen was also handed a five-second penalty for crossing the white line at the pit exit.

Fans offered their thoughts on Leclerc’s penalty on social media.

One said: “Spun out, cut every corner on the last lap, still got penalised, this man was NOT having it today.”

Another added: “Crazy, turning the steering wheel and the car not turning is a non-justifiable reason? Wild.”

A third claimed: “Do you not see him steer and the wheels not properly turning?"

F1 will now take a three-week break before returning in Canada later in May.