Leclerc Crashes Niki Lauda’s Ferrari 312T at Monaco Historic
Charles Leclerc crashed Niki Lauda’s Iconic Ferrari 312T F1 at the Monaco Historic Grand Prix.
In between this season's F1 races, Ferrari driver--and current leader in the driver's standings--Charles Leclerc participated in the iconic Monaco Historic Grand Prix earlier today, driving Niki Lauda's former championship-winning 1974 Ferrari 312T. Unfortunately, what must have been an incredibly special moment for Leclerc ended in embarrassment, as he spun the legendary Ferrari into the wall at rascasse.
In Leclerc's defense, the famous rascasse corner was pretty slippery, due to oil and small bits of debris which covered the road from previous crashes. You can see, as soon as he began braking into the corner, the back end just stepped out and swung around him into the wall. It didn't seem like there was any major structural damage done to the car, with only the rear wing being crumpled, but that was enough to end Leclerc's day in Monaco.
Adding insult to injury, the commentators made a cheeky joke about, instead of dismantling the notion that young drivers can't handle classic F1 cars, Leclerc dismantled a classic F1 car. It's hard to not feel bad for Leclerc. What must have been an absolute childhood dream, especially since Leclerc was born and raised in Monaco, ended in embarrassing fashion. It's also unfortunate because Leclerc wasn't entirely at fault, considering how slippery that section of track was. Leclerc was naturally embarrassed about the crash and took to Twitter to voice it.
Ironically, Leclerc was racing around Monaco with former Ferrari driver Jackie Ickx, who was driving his old 1972 Ferrari 312B2. After Leclerc drove his crashed Ferrari back to the starting grid, Ickx made his way there, too. Ickx walked over to Leclerc, put his arm around him, and the two exchanged some seemingly kind words with one another, as they posed for a photo in front of Ickx's 312B2.
All will be forgiven if Leclerc and Ferrari can hold onto their driver's and manufacturer's championship leads this season. There's still a long season ahead of them, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen just beat Leclerc out for the win in Miami last week, but he'll be able to get back in the driver's seat May 22, for the Spanish Grand Prix.
