Bad mistake by Charles Leclerc ahead of the Formula 1 sprint in Miami: On a flooded track, the Ferrari driver aquaplanes and crashes straight into the wall
Disaster for Charles Leclerc ahead of the Formula 1 sprint in Miami (follow the live updates here!): The Ferrari driver crashed on his way to the starting grid and was unable to take part in the race. According to his own statement, the cause was aquaplaning on the wet track – the Monegasque driver himself described it as a “big mistake.”
The incident occurred during the reconnaissance lap. In turn 10 of the Miami International Autodrome, Leclerc lost control of his Ferrari SF-25 in difficult conditions.
Onboard footage shows the car understeering straight into the wall at a point that is normally taken at full throttle and is hardly perceived as a real corner by drivers.
Charles Leclerc hits the wall!!
With rain falling heavily, Leclerc sustains heavy damage on his way to the grid after contact with the wallF1 F1Sprint MiamiGP pic. twitter.com/XGiaxPPuBq
— Formula 1 (@F1) May 3, 2025
Immediately after the crash, Leclerc radioed the pits: “No, no! I’m trying to get back. Complete aquaplaning, really complete aquaplaning! I wasn’t even pushing!”
Shortly afterwards, the sobering realization: “I don’t think I can make it back. I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry.”
“I’m sitting at the wheel”
In the subsequent interview, Leclerc takes responsibility: “There could be many reasons, but ultimately I’m the one behind the wheel. It’s a mistake, and a big one. On the lap to the starting grid, you obviously want to avoid something like that.”
He describes how he completely lost control of the car on the back straight: “I didn’t even try to push, but there was a lot of aquaplaning and the car just didn’t respond to what I was doing. Then it went into the wall. But that’s no excuse.”
Ferrari now faces the challenge of getting the damaged SF-25 back into shape in time for qualifying for Sunday’s Grand Prix. Leclerc is confident: “I’m optimistic. However, I couldn’t really see how bad the damage is. The impact was quite heavy because there’s only a hard wall at that point [and no tire stacks or SAFER barriers].”
Even aside from Leclerc’s retirement, the sprint did not go smoothly. Due to the difficult conditions, the start was postponed after two formation laps. Slick tires were used in the race itself, but another accident ultimately meant that the sprint was ended behind the safety car.
