The Official Monaco Grand Prix Thread

GP MONACO Ferrari has been smarter since Monday. Now we know what really happened to Charles Leclerc's Ferrari and why the damage was not discovered. Due to lack of time could not be discovered at all.
Michael Schmidt 27.05.2021
Ferrari won a pole position and a second place in the race at Monte Carlo, but gave away a win. If Charles Leclerc had started from the best grid position with an intact car, then he would most likely have won this race. Ferrari had the ingredients: A fast car and a moderate tire wear.

And yet a small detail stood in the way of Ferrari's first victory since Singapore in 2019. During the analysis in the factory, a tiny crack was discovered in the wheel hub, where the drive shaft starts. The wave itself was fine. The damage could only have been detected with a precise examination, for example by ultrasound.

But none of the engineers could have imagined that this component of all components could have received anything from the shock that was initiated into the opposite wheel during the lateral impact into the guardrail at the second swimming pool curve.
At first, of course, the gearbox was suspected. It would not be the first time that in such an accident scenario the output shaft in the differential would have received a blow due to the force introduction via the right drive shaft. A change would have meant a penalty transfer of five places for Leclerc. Ferrari, of course, wanted to avoid this and left the gearbox in the car after all checks. Many spoke of too big a poker.

But this had nothing to do with risk: "Even if we had changed the gearbox, the damage would have occurred," asserted team boss Mattia Binotto. What happened then was an unfortunate concatenation of circumstances, the result of which would have been difficult to avoid according to previous findings, but which Ferrari will certainly not happen in the event of repetition.

After reviewing the car that arrived at Maranello on Monday morning and reviewing all the logs, it was clear that the time pressure and the one-offness of the damage had led to Leclerc's retirement even before the start. The driver felt it after two kilometers while accelerating out of the Loews curve, when the inside wheel was maximally relieved and still had to transmit traction.
Change not allowed out of caution
Many wondered after the race why Ferrari did not discover the damage or, as a precaution, changed the whole drive. For the drive shaft, wheel carrier and hub on the left side, technical commissioner Jo Bauer would only have given permission if Ferrari had been able to prove perfectly that one of the parts was damaged. A voluntary change would have automatically relegated Leclerc to the end of the grid.

From the accident, the time played against Ferrari. The heavily damaged car with start number 16 did not come out of the Parc Fermé until 6.30 p.m. on Saturday and had to return there only one hour later. Ferrari used the limited time for first gearbox checks with the boroscope and with oil samples.

No damage was to be seen, but this did not mean an all-clear. The fact that Ferrari did not make a statement on Saturday night had nothing to do with obfuscation for tactical considerations. A final verdict could only be allowed when the engine and transmission had been running in a standing position.

The FIA did not release Leclerc's car again until 10 a.m. on Sunday. From then on, the mechanics worked against the clock. They had to repair the entire right side of the car and be ready so early that after starting the engine and shifting the gearbox, there would still have been enough time to change the power transmission, should there be the slightest suspicion.

At 12.15 p.m., the engineers finally gave the green light. The car was ready, the transmission passed all tests, both drive shafts transmitted the necessary torque.

Of course, you also looked at the left side of the car. But in the hustle and bustle, there was simply no longer the necessary time for in-depth investigations into the steel and aluminum components of the drive. Ferrari will learn from the mishap. In the event that a similar accident happens again, the procedures are changed in such a way that there is still time for precise material checks on the components facing away from the impact. It could happen again in Baku.