Carlos Sainz punishment confirmed after FIA investigation into Singapore GP qualifying breach
Carlos Sainz will leave Ferrari for Williams at the end of F1 2024
Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz has been hit with a €25,000 fine, half of which has been suspended for the remainder of F1 2024, following a breach in Singapore Grand Prix qualifying.
Sainz crashed out of qualifying in the early moments of Q3, with his car finding the barrier after he lost control at the final corner as he prepared to start a flying lap.
Carlos Sainz risks FIA fine, reprimand for crossing track in Singapore qualifying
With the session suspended, Sainz walked across the track to return to the pit lane, with Fernando Alonso‘s Aston Martin passing close by as the Ferrari man headed back to the pits.
Sainz was forced to visit the stewards for an “alleged breach of Article 26.7 b) of the FIA Formula One Sporting Regulations for crossing the track without permission during qualifying.”
The FIA later confirmed that Sainz has been slapped with a €25,000 fine, €12,500 of which has been “suspended for the remainder of the 2024 season on condition that there is no further breach of a similar nature.”
Sainz’s fine comes despite the incident being similar in nature to that involving Lewis Hamilton at last year’s Qatar Grand Prix, where the seven-time World Champion walked across the track after retiring following a collision with Mercedes team-mate George Russell at the first corner.
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Hamilton, who crossed the track while the race was under Safety Car conditions, was hit with a €50,000 fine – half of which was suspended for the remainder of the F1 2023 season – and a reprimand.
Lando Norris, the McLaren driver, was hit with an identical punishment after retiring on the opening lap of the Miami sprint race in May.
Hamilton joked about the investigation into Sainz’s offence during the post-qualifying press conference in Singapore, quipping: “Where that rule is, there’s a picture of me.”
The stewards revealed that Sainz’s was deemed a lesser offence as his transgression came under a red flag, whereas both Hamilton and Norris’s occurred under Safety Car conditions.
The verdict read: “The Stewards heard from the driver of Car 55 (Carlos Sainz), the team representative and reviewed positioning/marshalling system data, video, and information from the marshals.
“After crashing during Q3 which caused a red flag, Carlos Sainz crossed the track and then crossed the pit entry road.
“The Stewards examined video, questioned the marshals and heard from the driver that he crossed without first obtaining permission from a Marshal.
“The regulations are explicit that this is not permitted and is a potentially very dangerous situation. Further, this was reinforced by the Race Director in a previous drivers’ meeting.
“The Stewards accept that Sainz thought that the track was clear because he was after the pit entry and there was a red flag.
“However, there were still five cars circulating and it was possible that one may make a mistake and not enter the pit lane, or may have entered the pit lane faster than Sainz thought.
“Further, there were potentially other vehicles entering the track that the driver had no knowledge of.
“The Stewards compared this to other penalties that have been given recently, which were given when the track was in race conditions, but under safety car and consider that this is a somewhat less severe case, because of the red flag.
“Further, the driver’s idea that because he was beyond the pit entry is another mitigating circumstance.
“But in light of the explicit regulation reinforced in prior drivers’ meetings the Stewards order the fine which is lower than previous penalties and order half to be suspended for the remainder of the 2024 season, in light of the mitigating circumstances.”
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