Three drivers, including George Russell, received grid penalties during the Brazilian Grand Prix qualifying after it was discovered that they had all broken new regulations surrounding the pit lane.
Before the Brazilian Grand Prix, George Russell and two other drivers received penalties, and Russell was accused of violating the “spirit” of a new F1 regulation.
The Mercedes driver placed sixth overall in the third qualifying round on Friday. This indicated that he would start the race alongside teammate Lewis Hamilton, who had qualified for the race on Sunday in fifth place, on the third row of the grid.
However, the Englishman was immediately given a two-place grid penalty, which caused him to drop to eighth position. That was because of an incident that happened in the pit lane when he seemed to obstruct Pierre Gasly of Alpine as they were entering the track together.
Russell broke a new regulation by blocking, which was implemented following last week’s Mexican Grand Prix. Drivers cannot block their competitors by driving excessively slowly in the pit lane, according to the rule.
Russell disregarded the instruction to stay as far to the left as possible to allow faster cars to pass. He was thus reported to the stewards, who discovered that he had broken the rules and punished him.
Russell’s car, number 63, was not as far to the left as it was possible to drive while in the pit exit at a slow speed. The Stewards examined in-car video evidence and heard from the team representative and driver of Car 63,” the stewards stated in their explanation.
“The Race Director’s Event Notes for this event included a specific clause (item 14) stating that it was permitted to go slow in the pit exit to create a gap before crossing the SC2 line, but that in doing so, a driver must stay as far to the left as possible to allow other drivers to pass on the right side in order to prevent situations similar to the ones that happened in Mexico.
“Russell was getting ready for an out lap as he left the pits. Russell did not stay entirely to the left, but he did slow down to open up a gap for a clear lap. The race director’s instructions were not followed, and as a result, the car(s) behind could not overtake. The language and intent of item 14 of the Race Director’s Event Notes are obviously broken by this.
Not only did Russell break the new regulations, but Gasly and Esteban Ocon, his Alpine teammate, were also given penalties. It was discovered that the Frenchmen and Russell had both broken the rule.
As a result, they will also drop down the grid for Sunday’s race, with Ocon going from 12th to 14th and Gasly dropping down from 13th to 15th. The stewards used the same wording as they did for the explanation about Russell.
Max Verstappen claimed pole position in the session, which was cut short when a massive thunderstorm hit Sao Paulo. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc will line up alongside him in second, with Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll third.
Before Sunday’s race, there will be a sprint on Saturday evening. Lando Norris will line up in pole position for that race, with Verstappen second, while Russell has the chance to redeem himself somewhat from fourth.
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