The stewards overseeing Alpine’s Right of Review into Pierre Gasly’s time penalties from the Monaco Grand Prix have rescinded the punishments, meaning the French driver is reinstated to the podium.
The one-time grand prix winner had been given two five-second time penalties for speeding in the pit lane in Monte Carlo, which were added to his race time at the chequered flag, dropping him from third on the road to seventh in the classified results.
However, following the petition process instigated by Team Enstone, it has been determined that Gasly did not break the pit lane speed limit, so his sanctions have been voided.
The issues with the pit lane speed limit in the Principality last weekend are well-trodden ground, but only Alpine sought to have the problem investigated after the fact.
Gasly’s Alpine team-mate Franco Colapinto was also handed a five-second time penalty, but as the Argentine driver was outside the points, there was no virtue in utilising the same mechanism for him.
Lewis Hamilton, Oscar Piastri and George Russell all served their equivalent punishments in the race, and none of their teams sought to have the situation reviewed.
For Russell in particular, it set off a series of events that culminated in a second consecutive pointless grand prix. On media day at the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix, Piastri insisted the FIA could not change the results now, given that some drivers had served their penalties whilst others, like Gasly, did not.
Now the motorsport governing body has. However, the expectation of the Right of Review would not necessarily have been an amendment to the results, otherwise an appeal or a protest would have been a more appropriate avenue.
Rather, Alpine would have been seeking to understand how and why the penalties were applied to drivers who did not exceed the 60kph limit.
More to follow…
Decisions as per the official FIA stewards’ decision document
DECISION 1
46. In relation to the penalty applied to Car 10 in Document 73, we determine that:
a. The penalty be rescinded.
b. The 5 seconds added to the elapsed race time of Car 10 shall be removed.
c. The classification shall be amended accordingly and determined as Final subject only to any appeal.
DECISION 2
47. In relation to the penalty applied to Car 10 in Document 75 we determine that:
a. The penalty be rescinded.
b. The 5 seconds added to the elapsed race time of Car 10 shall be removed.
c. The classification shall be amended accordingly and determined as Final subject only to any appeal.
DECISION 3
48. That based on Decisions 1 and 2 above, the Drivers’ and Constructors’ Championship points shall be recalculated accordingly.
DECISION 4
49. As the Right of Review has been upheld and the original decisions have been revised, the deposits paid by the Competitor in relation to both petitions for review shall be returned pursuant to Article 14.4.3 of the FIA International Sporting Code.