Charles Leclerc admits that his dramatic spin on the final lap of the Miami Grand Prix “is all on me” as the Ferrari driver lost out on a potential podium.<\/p>\n
The Monegasque driver suffered highs and lows during Sunday’s 57-lap race in Miami, having initially led proceedings after getting the jump on polesitter Kimi Antonelli and Max Verstappen from third on the grid.<\/p>\n
Leclerc<\/a> was eventually shuffled back over the opening laps after tussling for position with Antonelli and Lando Norris, but lost further ground after an early pit stop dropped him behind George Russell.<\/p>\n Having recovered the position and overtaken Verstappen, Leclerc was running third but conceded the spot on the penultimate lap to Oscar Piastri down the back straight.<\/p>\n In his bid to re-pass the McLaren driver, Leclerc completed a high-speed spin through the opening section on the final lap.<\/p>\n Although able to rejoin, Leclerc had glanced the left-hand side of his Ferrari against the wall with the damage leaving him unable to defend from Russell and Verstappen through the final corners and he took the chequered flag in sixth.<\/p>\n “Very disappointed with myself. The last lap mistake is all on me and it cost us P3 or P4, more likely it would have been a P4 but the P3 was still right there,” said Leclerc.<\/p>\n “I’m very disappointed with myself, mistakes happen but on the last lap of the race like that, it’s frustrating and not the level where I should be at.<\/p>\n “It’s been a very strong start to the season, not many mistakes. This one luckily didn’t cost us too many points but it could have ended in the wall. It’s a shame.”<\/p>\n Leclerc’s day went from bad to worse, as he was noted for driving his damaged car in an unsafe condition, leaving the track multiple times and gaining an advantage, and clashing with Mercedes rival George Russell at the final hairpin.<\/p>\n Following their post-race investigations, the stewards opted to hand Leclerc a drive-through penalty<\/a> for leaving the track repeatedly, which \u2013 given that this was handed out after the Grand Prix \u2013 has been converted into 20 seconds being added onto his race time, dropping him down the order to eighth place.<\/p>\n