Ferrari's title hopes dealt blow with Charles Leclerc grid penalty

The Formula 1 drivers' championship has already been decided -- it's Max Verstappen's for the fourth year running -- but the constructor championship is still up for grabs entering the season finale in Abu Dhabi.

Ferrari hit a major setback in its contention for the title when driver Charles Leclerc was assessed a 10-place grid penalty ahead of Sunday's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Leclerc's car was dealing with a power unit issue that kept him out of the opening practice session in Abu Dhabi. Ferrari confirmed it ultimately had to replace Leclerc's energy store, his first time exceeding his allocation of permitted components, triggering the penalty.

"No, it's not a surprise, because we are monitoring (the unit) for one or two events, and we knew that we were on the edge," Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur told Sky F1. "We took the decision before the start because we don't want to have a DNF or even to miss a session."

Leclerc's second-place finish to Verstappen at the Qatar Grand Prix last week helped pull Ferrari 21 points behind McLaren.

In what was already going to be a difficult task for Ferrari, Leclerc's penalty will make it all the tougher for the team to overtake McLaren on Sunday.

--Field Level Media