Gasly's Grid Penalty
Pierre Gasly receives three-place grid penalty at Silverstone for impeding Lance Stroll
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Key Points
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Penalty issued at 20:01 local time following the Q1 Turn 15 incident at Silverstone, with Gasly dropped three places for the British Grand Prix.
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Gasly said the approaching car was Kimi Antonelli and believed the rival was not on a timed lap, a claim put in context by Alpine and FOM acknowledging radio problems.
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As a consequence of the penalty, Nico Hulkenberg, Oliver Bearman and Carlos Sainz moved up one position on the starting grid for the British Grand Prix.
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The stewards described the circumstances as unfortunate but emphasized that a lack of radio warning does not remove a driver's responsibility to avoid impeding another car, with on-board/dashboard information available to Gasly.
Pierre Gasly will start Sunday's British Grand Prix from 15th on the grid after stewards handed him a three-place penalty for impeding Lance Stroll during qualifying at Silverstone, Formula 1 confirmed. The decision came at 20:01 local time following a Turn 15 incident in Q1, where Stroll was forced off the racing line to pass the slower Alpine.
Gasly had qualified 12th but now drops three spots. As a result, Nico Hulkenberg, Oliver Bearman, and Carlos Sainz each move up one place on the starting grid, according to Total Motorsport.
What Happened at Turn 15 in Q1
Stroll was on a flying lap — a timed lap where every tenth of a second counts — when he caught Gasly on the racing line at Turn 15. Gasly was on an in-lap, meaning he was not setting a time. Stroll had to go off the normal line to get past, news.gp reported. That kind of obstruction is called impeding, and it is against the rules.
Stewards reviewed the incident and ruled that Gasly had unnecessarily held up Stroll's lap. The penalty — three grid places — is the standard punishment for impeding in qualifying, Total Motorsport noted.
Gasly's Radio Went Dead, But Stewards Weren't Swayed
Gasly defended himself by saying he had no working radio during the incident. He said he thought the approaching car belonged to Kimi Antonelli and believed it was not on a timed lap. Alpine and FOM — the company that runs Formula 1 — both confirmed there was a technical problem with the radio equipment, autohebdof1.com reported.
Stewards called the situation
Stewards: Dashboard Data Was Still Available to Gasly
The stewards accepted that the radio failure was real. But they ruled it did not remove Gasly's responsibility. They said Gasly had access to dashboard and in-car information that showed Stroll was approaching on a timed lap, Formula 1 reported. In other words, a broken radio is not a free pass.
The stewards described the circumstances as unfortunate but firm. A driver must use all available tools — including the car's own display — to avoid blocking rivals, according to Athlon Sports.
Grid Shuffle Lifts Hulkenberg, Bearman, and Sainz
Gasly's drop from 12th to 15th set off a small chain reaction. Hulkenberg, Bearman, and Sainz all moved one spot forward on the starting grid for Sunday's race, Total Motorsport confirmed. In a tight midfield battle, one grid position can make a real difference at race start.
Gasly now faces a tough climb from 15th if he wants to score points for Alpine in the British Grand Prix at Silverstone.
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