SAKHIR, Bahrain – Mercedes drivers George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli have each been given a one-place grid penalty for the Bahrain Grand Prix. This decision came shortly after they qualified in second and fourth positions respectively on Saturday.
The penalties were issued because Mercedes released both drivers into the pit lane fast lane prematurely as qualifying was restarting after a red flag. This action is against the regulations due to safety concerns.
As a result of these penalties, Charles Leclerc of Ferrari moves up to second place on the grid, and Pierre Gasly of Alpine advances to fourth.
The red flag during qualifying was caused by Esteban Ocon`s crash in his Haas during Q2.
Mercedes explained that they misinterpreted the FIA`s `estimated restart time` as the actual time for the session to resume.
Toto Wolff, the Mercedes team boss, had expressed hope after qualifying that the drivers would not be penalized for what he acknowledged was a team error.
Wolff stated to Sky Sports that there was no precedent for this specific rule breach and they would await the stewards` decision, hoping the drivers wouldn`t suffer for a team mistake.
During the meeting with the stewards, Mercedes representative Andrew Shovlin argued that the team`s error was a simple misreading of the restart time and that no sporting advantage was gained.
However, the stewards stated that prematurely entering the fast lane could be seen as a sporting advantage, potentially allowing a team to execute their plan while others might be hindered.
The stewards acknowledged that the breach was unintentional and a genuine mistake by Mercedes. Nevertheless, they deemed a penalty necessary to deter teams from deploying cars based solely on estimated restart times.
The verdict also mentioned that future similar breaches under different circumstances could lead to more severe penalties.
Revised Bahrain GP Grid – Top 10
- Oscar Piastri, Mercedes
- Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
- George Russell, Mercedes
- Pierre Gasly, Alpine
- Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes
- Lando Norris, McLaren
- Max Verstappen, Red Bull
- Carlos Sainz, Williams
- Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari
- Yuki Tsunoda, Red Bull
