SEPANG – The FIA found Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari in compliance with the F1 2026 regulations following an “extensive physical inspection” at last weekend’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku.
The inspection of Leclerc’s car was part of the FIA’s routine post-race checks, which see a car classified in the top 10 picked at random for a further examination.
Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari passes extra FIA checks at Azerbaijan GP
Leclerc finished fourth in Azerbaijan last weekend as Mercedes driver George Russell collected victory.
The Ferrari driver caused a stir after the race when he confirmed to television crews that he had used Ferrari’s ADUO2 engine in Baku, much to the dismay of the team’s press officer.
Uncertainty had surrounded Leclerc’s engine situation after he crashed heavily in the Italian Grand Prix at Monza last month.
Ferrari and Leclerc had opted to keep their cards close to their chest in Baku until the Monegasque let slip after the race that his Monza engine was also used in Azerbaijan.
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Ahead of this weekend’s Bahrain Grand Prix – held at the former Malaysian Grand Prix venue in Sepang – it has emerged that Leclerc’s car was picked at random for further checks after the race in Azerbaijan with the SF-26 found to be totally in compliance with the rules.
The internal combustion air intake cooling system was at the heart of the FIA’s checks, which see officials focus on a specific area of the chosen car.
A note by Jo Bauer, the FIA’s Formula 1 Technical Delegate, read: “After the race in Baku, car number 16 was randomly chosen among the top ten cars for more extensive physical inspections.
“Subject to these physical inspections was the ICE air intake cooling system as well as the wiring loom and all attached sensors.
“Concerning the mechanical side of these inspections the following items were checked:
“Compliance with Article C5.6.
“Compliance with Article C5.22.
“Compliance with Article C5.23.
“Compliance with Article C7.
“FIA-F1-DOC-001 submissions [sic].
“Concerning the electronics side of these inspections the following items were checked:
“Identification of the sensors and their connections to the FIA standard ECU.
“Data logging of signals.
“Homologation status of the sensors.
“FIA-F1-DOC-001 submissions.
“All inspected components were found to be in compliance with the 2026 Formula One Technical Regulations.”
Ferrari heads to Malaysia second in the constructors’ championship, 160 points behind leaders Mercedes and 72 ahead of third-placed McLaren.
The Scuderia remains without a win since Leclerc took victory at the British Grand Prix at Silverstone on July 5.
Leclerc’s teammate Lewis Hamilton claimed Ferrari’s only other win of the F1 2026 season in Barcelona.
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Originally published by Planet F1 —
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