F1 News: Yuki Tsunoda Handed Post-Saudi Arabian GP Time Penalty For Pre-Race Blunder
VCARB driver Yuki Tsunoda faced a setback with a five-second time penalty following an unsafe release from the garage before the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. The incident, which almost led to a collision with McLaren's Lando Norris, has resulted in disciplinary action from the stewards.
Key Takeaways:
- Yuki Tsunoda received a five-second penalty for unsafe release before the race, nearly colliding with Lando Norris.
- After a thorough review, stewards decided against awarding a penalty point, given the incident's timing during the reconnaissance lap.
- Tsunoda admitted to the mistake and issued an apology for the oversight.
The Saudi Arabian Grand Prix was not without its pre-race drama as Yuki Tsunoda of VCARB had a near miss with Lando Norris' McLaren. In the moments leading up to the race, Tsunoda was released from his garage in a manner that placed him directly in the path of an oncoming Lando Norris. The McLaren driver was forced to brake abruptly, averting a potential collision and highlighting a serious breach of safety protocols.
The race stewards conducted a review of the incident, including video footage, team radio communications, and in-car videos. Both Tsunoda and representatives from the involved teams, Car 22 and Car 4, were heard by the stewards. Following the review, the stewards issued a statement:
"The Stewards reviewed video, team radio and in-car video evidence and heard from the drivers and team representatives of Car 22 and Car 4 and determined that Car 22 was released unsafely from the garage during the reconnaissance lap into the path of Car 4 which had to take evasive action to avoid a collision.
"The driver of Car 22 admitted that he did not see the Number 1 in his team signalling not to come out as his attention was diverted towards exiting the car from the garage.
"He apologised for his oversight."
The stewards explained their decision regarding the penalty, aligning it with standard procedures for such incidents, yet taking into account the specific context of the pre-race timing:
"An unsafe release during the race (which would include the reconnaissance lap) would typically attract a five-second time penalty, which is what we imposed.
"In addition, for an infringement of this nature, it would be appropriate to award 1 penalty point. Given that this took place during the reconnaissance lap as opposed to the race proper, we decided to not impose the penalty point."