Sky Sports F1 pundits Anthony Davidson and Karun Chandhok were both left stunned during the final practice session for the Spanish Grand Prix by one driver’s ‘road rage’.
The pinnacle of motorsport had one last 60-minute session to finalise preparing their cars to qualify on Saturday afternoon. Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz set the pace in FP3 for the Spanish GP. The 29-year-old topped the timing sheet at his home race with a fastest lap of 1:13.013.
Sainz pipped McLaren rival and good friend Lando Norris to top the FP3 time sheet after the Briton’s 1:13.043 run. Less than one tenth of a second also separated the top four as Charles Leclerc (1:13.050) ran well in the sister Ferrari to pip Max Verstappen (1:13.087) of Red Bull.
Charles Leclerc’s ‘road rage’ at the Spanish GP stuns Anthony Davidson and Karun Chandhok
But while Leclerc set the third-fastest time in FP3 at the Spanish GP, the 26-year-old also stunned Davidson and Chandhok with the Ferrari driver’s ‘road rage’ against Norris. The Sky Sports F1 pundits’ shock at the six-time Grand Prix winners’ moment of madness was clear.
Norris had kept to the inside through the kink of Turn 6 to let Leclerc take the racing line for the T7 braking zone. But the Monegasque aborted a push lap and cut straight in front of the McLaren driver. Leclerc’s chop inside even saw the rear of his Ferrari clip Norris’ front wing.
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Davidson instantly reacted to the incident on Sky Sports F1 (22/6, 12:30) by claiming he saw some ‘road rage’. Chandhok even agreed with his colleague that the Scuderia star’s chop on Norris was clear ‘road rage’ and admitted, ‘I don’t understand what Leclerc has done there’.
Upon seeing replays of Leclerc and Norris’ incident in FP3 at the Spanish GP, Davidson also added: “Wow! They did touch! He’s going to get a penalty for that.”
Davidson also added (12:59): “Lando pulls over to the side. Leclerc takes it, basically these drivers are taking matters into their own hands. They’re trying to show each other, ‘You don’t do that to me otherwise there’ll be consequences’.”
Lando Norris made every effort to avoid impeding Charles Leclerc in FP3
Leclerc clearly had a hot-headed moment under the sun at the Spanish GP as he needlessly chopped inside Norris. The pair are friends off the track but the Ferrari racer could not hide his frustration after feeling the McLaren star impeded his last push lap during final practice.
But even if Norris had impeded Leclerc – which he arguably did not beyond leaving dirty air having left the Ferrari driver acres of tarmac – the Monegasque had no reason to drive in a dangerous manner and actually cause, albeit slight, contact with his McLaren counterpart.
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