Max Verstappen, Lewis Hamilton, Fernando Alonso and George Russell have all been cleared of wrongdoing after investigations following qualifying.
Three of the drivers drivers – Verstappen, Alonso and Russell – were all investigated by the stewards for impeding rivals at the pit exit in the final five minutes of the first phase of qualifying. Hamilton was later placed under investigation for failing to slow under yellow flags.The pit lane impeding incidents occured towards the end of Q1. With four minutes remaining, just three cars were circulating the track with 17 cars in the pit lane. The field began to leave the pits, with Yuki Tsunoda the first driver out followed by Sergio Perez and Kevin Magnussen.
Behind Magnussen, Verstappen slowed to a crawl to build a gap to the Haas ahead, which was exiting the pit lane slowly. Verstappen crossed the white pit exit line at around 10kph and continue to drive slowly, but without stopping, until he eventually picked up speed around 14 seconds later.
Once Verstappen had departed, Lance Stroll and Nico Hulkenberg left the pits together behind the Red Bull. Alonso was next in the queue and was advised to “make a gap at pit exit”. He began to build up a gap to Hulkenberg, stopping at the white line before eventually exiting the pits at a slower rate than Verstappen had, all the while with Carlos Sainz Jnr’s Ferrari directly behind him.
Once the pair had picked up speed, Russell was the next in the queue at the pit exit line. Like Alonso, he came to a complete stop before allowing the pair ahead of him to drive away before he accelerated. Russell described the situation as a “total shitshow” over the radio before he eventually pulled away himself, passing Sainz after crossing the Safety Car line at the end of the pit lane.
After investigating the incident, the stewards cleared all three drivers of impeding their rivals behind, pointing the finger at the maximum lap time restriction applied to all laps in qualifying sessions to avoid cars crowding in the final sector.
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“The stewards consider that the entire set of incidents occurred as a direct result of the implementation of the minimum [sic] lap time between SC2 and SC1 which is designed (correctly so, in our view) to avoid dangerous backing-up of cars on the circuit during qualification,” the stewards explained.
“We note that there are contrary requirements on drivers in that they must respect the minimum [sic] time, they are attempting to create manageable gaps to cars in front, yet they are also required to avoid unnecessarily stopping at the pit exit or driving unnecessarily slowly. It was also particularly noted that the race director accepted that these contrary requirements exist.”
The stewards also said they recognised the problem of cars bunching up at pit exit, but could not offer a viable solution.
“All parties including the stewards are firmly of the view that it is better to have the potential of cars backing-up in the pit lane or at the pit exit, instead of the potentially dangerous situation of large speed differences on track,” the stewards explained.
“We consider that in the main all drivers involved in these incidents were acting in good faith and with safety as a priority. We also accept that race direction has taken the correct approach in apply the minimum [sic] lap time. It is desirable that better solution be found for the pit exit however at this stage, what that solution would be, is unknown.”
Hamilton was also cleared of failing to slow down under yellow flags in the final moments of the same session. The incident unfolded when, with one minute of Q1 remaining, Alonso spun at the exit of turn three.
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Yellow flags were displayed to warn other drivers about the stricken Aston Martin. After several cars passed the scene having lifted off, Hamilton was warned by race engineer Peter Bonnington as he began his own push lap.
However, as Hamilton rounded turn two, the yellow flag was lifted, allowing Hamilton to continue to push. But as he entered the sector, the race control system indicated a yellow flag in the area once again, lasting just two seconds as Hamilton drove by Alonso’s Aston Martin, which was now returning to speed off the racing line.
The stewards determined that Hamilton had not breached the regulations by failing to respect a yellow flag.
“The onboard video clearly shows there is no light or flag displayed to car 44 [Hamilton] on the straight into turn one, then a green light shows as he enters turn two, which is followed by two pulses of a yellow light, then moments later, the light panel is blank,” the stewards explained.
“The driver was slightly slower in the mini sector than on his previous push lap. Our determination is that there was no breach of the regulations.”
Williams driver Logan Sargeant was also investigated for the same offence as Hamilton. He was handed a 10-place grid penalty after the stewards deemed he overtook another driver and failed to slow adequately while passing Alonso’s car, which was facing the wrong way across the circuit.
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pcxmac (@pcxmac)
29th October 2023, 3:12
insert yuki tsunoda squable.
Esploratore (@esploratore1)
29th October 2023, 3:53
Unfortunately he wasn’t involved in this impeding, otherwise we could expect a title “hamilton, verstappen, alonso and russell avoid penalties, tsunoda doesn’t”!
Stephen Crowsen (@drycrust)
29th October 2023, 4:35
It’s about time they put in something like a clock showing the amount of time a driver is sitting or hogging the Pit Lane exit.
S
29th October 2023, 6:31
And set an alarm on it to 1 second.
S
29th October 2023, 6:31
What an absolute load of garbage. How much more blocking needs to be done before it becomes impeding? 14 seconds obviously isn’t enough…
Slightly…. A couple of tenths, or less? Due entirely to the observation of the flags and the incident, or just due to being slower on that lap?
Poor Sargeant drives for the wrong team, it seems. If only it featured a Merc badge prominently on the front…
Sporting Regulations application in F1 is a complete joke. Always has been and always will be.
notagrumpyfan
29th October 2023, 7:36
I would still call it ‘impeding’ unless they allow other drivers to pass them, similar to drivers who want to make a practice start at pit exit and line up at the side.
PMP
29th October 2023, 8:22
If passing on the pit lane is allowed in that situation, it’ll just je a chaos.
Robert
29th October 2023, 14:25
In some pit lanes I suspect it would be too narrow, yes. But in principle I would like that idea; if you drive slowly in the pit lane you have to stay to the side allowing others to pass. It all comes down to the fact that they all choose when to leave their garage, if they knew others have the right to pass them if they exit slowly they would probably behave very differently.
Imre (@f1mre)
29th October 2023, 7:38
So blocking the pit exit is fine and well. Stopping in the fast lane is fine and well.
Red Andy (@red-andy)
29th October 2023, 8:09
Seems a bit weird for the stewards to say, “Oh well, this is a totally foreseeable consequence of the minimum lap time requirements, so never mind, nothing to see here, blocking the pit exit is fine, actually” without considering whether the rules are causing more problems than they solve (not strictly the stewards’ role, but they can make a recommendation to the race director).
And of course the same “when is a yellow flag not a yellow flag” contortions we’ve seen before, most notoriously at Brazil 2012.
Ludewig
29th October 2023, 10:56
But do they cause more problems than they solve? Before we had cars doing the exact same thing, but on the track itself, which the stewards correctly notice is more dangerous, and which also hinders cars who are setting a lap.
I honestly don’t see the issue here.
Raymond Pang
29th October 2023, 8:44
How are the rules contrary, if 17 other drivers managed to get out of the pits without issue?
Tommy Scragend
29th October 2023, 8:58
Doesn’t exactly inspire confidence in the stewards if they don’t know the difference between minimum and maximum.
JOA20
29th October 2023, 9:04
Stopping in the pit lane with no red light and causing a queue to form behind you is impeding no matter how you look at it. Don’t tell me teams can’t calculate the timing before the car gets close to the pit exit.
Euro Brun (@eurobrun)
29th October 2023, 12:49
Indeed. It should be illegal to fully come to a stop anywhere on track or pitlane unless red flag / red light, or serious mitigating circumstances.
Keith Campbell (@keithedin)
29th October 2023, 9:25
Was Alonso investigated for his rather suspicious spin which ensured yellow flags for most of the field at the end of Q1? I admit, it would be a weird time to do something like that on purpose, with seemingly little to gain, but it did allow Lance a free run at getting into Q2, while the rest of the field were compromised…
someone or something
29th October 2023, 13:03
No investigation as far as I’m aware. I think it would be rather extraordinary for a mundane spin to lead to an investigation. Takes a bit more than a world feed commentator calling it suspicious.
That being said, I had my doubts, too. But apart from the spin looking clumsy, there was little reason to suspect foul play. I watched the incident play out from his perspective, and he does his best to get going again as soon as possible, U-turning into the first gap his engineer told him to go for, even if it looked a bit narrow.
Then there’s the consideration of risk vs. rewards. Sure, giving Stroll a better chance to make it into Q2 would be an incentive for the team, but why now? We’ve seen absolutely no indication of Alonso taking any risks to help Stroll. But deliberately spinning to give Stroll an outside chance to make the cut, at a track where the package looks extremely uncompetitive, and Alonso was far from safe, too? Damaging a fresh set of soft tyres and going over the kerbs at an uncomfortably high speed and unusual angle, almost immediately prompting Alonso to demand his team check the floor?
Sounds like risk vs. reward were nowhere near where things like that make any sense.
I think the most likely explanation is a boring one: Clumsy mistakes like this one may be uncharacteristic for a driver of Alonso’s format, but we’ve seen him make this kind of mistake in recent races regardless of whether anything’s at stake or not. He’s spun out of the sprint at Spa, went on an adventure in the emergency exit in Singapore, almost binned it in Free Practive in Mexico … It looks as though he’s having to push his car a great deal more than in the first half of the season in order to preserve any kind of competitivity, and that’s where its inconsistencies start becoming a problem. He’s having to second-guess where the limit is, and occasionally, there are bad surprises.
Keith Campbell (@keithedin)
29th October 2023, 18:44
I agree with all your points, though I haven’t seen the incident from Alonso’s perspective so that is some useful context. It’s just something that always seems off to me when a driver’s mistake can be a potentially big benefit to himself and/or his team. It wasn’t just the spin, it was how long it seemed to take him to get going again, but I understand it could have been because of a stream of traffic. And I think after causing the yellow, Alonso himself was not in danger, because I think he compromised enough cars that he was very unlikely to be eliminated.
melanos
29th October 2023, 14:58
Really? Too much lo lose, too little to gain (and for the teammate, nothing for himself)
Sounds too much like a crazy conspiracy theory to me
SteveP
29th October 2023, 9:41
Use the Singapore 2008 model and sweep it under the carpet at the end of the season?
Not that it really makes a difference. From performance in FP1-3 I suspect a grid penalty is unlikely to make any difference to their points this weekend.
MichaelN
29th October 2023, 10:24
Hilarious, and of course Ferrari has gotten half a dozen impeding penalties over the past months when anyone else so much as saw their drivers further up the track.
I’d complain about the stewards being bad, but that’s not it. Those men are deliberately chosen (by the FIA) to do these sorts of things. They never appoint anyone who is known as being strict with the written rules.
Doggy
29th October 2023, 13:22
Including those that let both Ferrari penalty free in Monza.
Weird Science
29th October 2023, 10:33
So if you’re on provisional pole after the first run in Q3 it seems there’s nothing in the rules to stop you parking up at the end of the pit lane to prevent anyone from doing a second run.
RC
29th October 2023, 11:44
Just like the past restarts along side the safety car; waiting in a pit lane will stop being a thing.
Jack
29th October 2023, 11:46
Pit lane should be, if the light is green then you you can’t stop in the pit lane / exit
DaveW (@dmw)
29th October 2023, 12:10
Drivers are forced to act in a clearly unsportsmanlike way to block other drivers because of a rule to prevent blocking of other drivers in an unsportsmanlike way. This is the most nonsensical stewards ruling since Massi in 2021.
No one is forcing any team to leave the garage at any time. If you don’t want to get stuck in rush hour with 4 mins left in the session go out with 7 mins left. It’s a disadvantage in track development. But you can shift the disadvantage of traffic in going out late to others by literally stopping competitors from leaving the pits? That seems insane as a sporting principle.
This guy
29th October 2023, 12:43
Anyone on Sargeant receiving a slam dunk penalty after passing under yellow, and Lewis walking away with it?
Or is this topic about Verstappen and Russell only when it comes to penalties?
AlanD
29th October 2023, 12:49
I think Hamilton passed under yellow because the car ahead pulled over to the right hand side. Not sure who it was or why they pulled over like tha, but it wasn’t an overtake at racing speeds.
SteveP
29th October 2023, 12:45
Perhaps they should close the pit lane exit 5 minutes before the chequered flag?
Keep the maximum lap time.
Add a minimum pit lane exit speed.
AlanD
29th October 2023, 12:51
Problem with that Steve is we will then see someone sitting there with 6 minutes to go and blocking everyone else. I think you have to say that if it is a green light, you cannot stop at it. If you don’t want to go out right then, stay in the garage.
SteveP
29th October 2023, 14:04
I did say: “Add a minimum pit lane exit speed.”
Whilst Doggy makes the specification of “shall drive at the maximum speed allowed” I think a bottom limit to match the top limit should cover it nicely and not leave people attempting the maximum immediately and going too fast with a consequent penalty.
With regard to the alleged yellow flag violation by Hamilton – the stewards have the telemetry and video, from that they could see the LH lifted slightly and also that the yellow cancelled to green with a couple of pulsed yellows a little later.
LH actions within the time period all matched the required acceleration changes to comply.
The change to green while Alonso was still a (partial) hazard round the corner is the thing to question.
Someone pressed a button to do that, the person was not LH.
Doggy
29th October 2023, 13:27
Easier solution, no one is allowed to stop in the pit lane and shall drive at the maximum speed allowed.
Only designated areas car may stop:
* Their pit box
* Any other area (practice start zone)
Jim from US (@jimfromus)
29th October 2023, 13:25
We went from VER getting a reprimand and then saying it should have been a penalty to no reprimands or penalties. You’ve got to love a sport where the officials are allowed to disregard the rule book on any occasion
Doggy
29th October 2023, 13:33
The issue is that the rulebook has loopholes, and that allows for free interpretation. If you find an article that clearly outlines the procedure, then please share it here.
That is why Max and Russel got away with it.
Same applies to Lewis and Fernando for yellow flags.
Same for both Ferrari in Monza
And etc etc etc
What is beyond belief is that this sport is about 70 years old, and they don’t have rules for the very basic things yet.
This guy
29th October 2023, 14:43
The FIA saying Verstappen should have been penalized, was about impeding Tsunoda. Had nothing to do with the pitlane investigation.
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
29th October 2023, 17:55
@jimfromus
That was referring to his incident with Tsunoda in Singapore, not his queueing in the pit lane. Apparently some television commentators got that wrong during the broadcasts on Saturday which seems to have caused a bit of confusion.
knightameer (@knightameer)
29th October 2023, 13:56
Fernando and George are lucky Max was being investigated for the same infringement. If it was Yuki instead of Max, they would have penalized all three.
PS. The Singapore steward should regret some more for this going unpunished again.
Broderick Harper (@banbrorace)
29th October 2023, 13:58
LOL!! I suppose penalising a quarter of the grid, might have proven problematic.
Not that I’m been cynical or anything.
melanos
29th October 2023, 15:00
Apply the same penalty to all the grid, and everything remains the same
This guy
29th October 2023, 14:45
The FIA saying Verstappen should have been penalized, was about impeding Tsunoda. Had nothing to do with the pitlane investigation.