Lance Stroll has been handed a one-place grid penalty and one penalty point on his super license after an incident during Free Practice 1 at the F1 Monaco GP earlier today.
The incident occurred in turn 6 when Stroll’s Aston Martin collided with Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari. It took place inside the opening 15 minutes of the session.
The Aston Martin moved across the racing line and into Leclerc’s path, resulting in contact.
Contact between the two cars resulted in significant damage on both sides.
- Leclerc sustained front wing damage.
- Stroll sustained floor, gearbox, diffuser, and rear suspension damage.
According to the stewards’ report, Stroll said the Aston Martin team warned him over a radio message about Leclerc’s Ferrari approaching.
However, the driver confirmed he failed to hear the message in time to react appropriately.
As a result, he inadvertently caused the collision by cutting into Leclerc’s path, leaving the Ferrari driver with no space to avoid the incident.
After reviewing video footage, team radio, in-car cameras, and data from the marshalling system, the stewards found the Aston Martin driver “wholly” at fault for the crash.
They noted Leclerc was in no position to avoid the crash, and Stroll’s move directly led to an avoidable incident, and a violation of Appendix L, Chapter IV, Article 2d) of the FIA International Sporting Code.
As a result, the stewards provided Stroll with a one-place grid penalty for the race in Monaco and added one penalty point to his super license.
Bringing his total to three points over a twelve-month period.
This penalty could be detrimental for the Aston Martin driver, particularly on a circuit like Monaco, where overtaking is tricky. In fact his session was done after the contact.
As a result, the driver faces increased pressure to perform well and secure a strong qualifying position to earn points.
