23/05/2021
NEWS STORY
Hours before today's Monaco Grand Prix, Ferrari has given his gearbox the all-clear.
"Following further in depth checks this morning, no apparent defects were found on Charles Leclerc’s gearbox," said the Italian team in a brief statement.
"Therefore the Monegasque driver will start today’s race from pole position, as per the qualifying result."
Last night the Maranello outfit revealed that initial inspection ahead of this morning's more thorough investigation has indicated no damage.
While racing director, Laurent Mekies admitted there was a "sword of Damocles hanging over the result", ahead of the initial inspection, Mattia Binotto was adamant that the team wouldn't take any risks if uncertain of the condition of the unit.
"We will not gamble," said the Italian. "For us what's important after such a qualifying is to try to maximise the number of points for the championship, and obviously to maximise we need to finish the race. So reliability is key, reliability remains the priority. If we have any doubts, we will certainly change and fix it."
Leclerc starts today's race alongside title challenger Max Verstappen.
Check out our Sunday gallery from Monaco, here.