F1 Should Have Punished Charles Leclerc at the Mexico GP

Former F1 driver and analyst Jolyon Palmer believes the FIA missed a clear-cut penalty during the opening lap of the Mexico City Grand Prix, criticizing the decision not to punish Charles Leclerc for overtaking Lewis Hamilton off the track. 

Speaking on F1TV’s post-race analysis, Palmer didn’t mince words, “It should be a penalty. It should be a slam dunk. The reality is here Charles Leclerc overtook Lewis Hamilton off the track and he should have had a penalty for it.”

The incident occurred during a chaotic Lap 1 battle involving Leclerc, Hamilton, Max Verstappen, and George Russell, all jostling for position into the tight first corner. Leclerc, squeezed between Verstappen and Hamilton, ran wide but rejoined ahead of Hamilton. 

A Four-Way Fight Turns Controversial

As the field funneled into Turn 1, Verstappen got a better start than George Russell who started from fourth and went into a four-way battle with Leclerc, Hamilton and race leader Lando Norris. 

However, the Dutchman locked up and cut the corner, allowing Hamilton through and dropped to fourth just above Russell. The Mercedes star complained that it was unfair for Verstappen to cut corners like that and not get penalized. 

At the same time, Hamilton briefly gained some momentum on Leclerc for P2 before being edged out by Leclerc. The Monegasque was on the outside of both Norris and Hamilton when he took to the grass and cut across the corner and joined the track in front of Hamilton. 

Palmer argued that this kind of move has drawn penalties in previous races and that the FIA’s decision not to act raised fresh questions about consistency.