Nirei Fukuzumi punished for taking out GP3 leader Charles Leclerc
Nirei Fukuzumi will take a grid penalty for the next GP3 round at Sepang for taking out ART team-mate and championship leader Charles Leclerc at Monza
Ferrari academy driver Leclerc was trying to pass Honda junior Fukuzumi for fifth on the third lap of the Sunday morning race in Italy after Fukuzumi lost momentum being overtaken by Jake Dennis.
As Leclerc drew alongside on the exit of the Roggia chicane, Fukuzumi moved across in defence and made contact with his team-mate - firing himself into the barriers and then back into the path of Tatiana Calderon.
Leclerc was also eliminated, ploughing into the Lesmo gravel with suspension damage.
Stewards ruled that Fukuzumi had not left enough space for Leclerc and gave him a three-place grid demotion for the first race in Malaysia at the start of next month.
The intra-team collision marred a weekend in which ART Grand Prix clinched the teams' title for the sixth time in GP3's seven-year existence and in which it finished one-two in race two with Nyck de Vries and Alexander Albon.
Though the crash caused Leclerc's second retirement of the season and his title rivals Albon and Antonio Fuoco both finished on the podium, it has not done too much harm to his title bid.
Outscoring his opponents in race one, where he finished fourth to Albon and Fuoco's sixth and eighth, means Leclerc increased his cushion to Fuoco from 22 points to 24 over the course of the Monza weekend.
Albon is a further eight points back with four races to go in Malaysia and Abu Dhabi.
LEADING CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS:
| Pos | Driver | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Charles Leclerc | 177 |
| 2 | Antonio Fuoco | 153 |
| 3 | Alexander Albon | 145 |
| 4 | Nyck de Vries | 104 |
| 5 | Jake Dennis | 96 |
Be part of the Autosport community
Join the conversationShare Or Save This Story
Ferrari F1 drivers split over China sprint race clash talks
Leclerc: Sainz “over the limit” with defence in F1 Chinese GP sprint race
What's been going wrong for Leclerc in F1's tiny margins qualifying game
What Shanghai's sprint race and qualifying tell us about the 2024 F1 Chinese GP
F1 teams to discuss change to jump start regulations
Verstappen: "Happier with pole than sprint race win" at F1 Chinese GP
F1 Chinese Grand Prix – Start time, starting grid, how to watch, & more
Why Alpine’s rigorous training camp yields telling insights into its juniors
Why F1's junior logjam isn't entirely a product of current issues
Ranking the top 10 drivers on F1's undercard in 2023
Ranking the 10 best drivers from F1's junior series in 2022
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
Top Comments