Fernando Alonso has escaped a grid penalty at the Turkish Grand Prix after being investigated for speeding under double-waved yellow flags.
Alonso qualified fifth for Alpine after moving up one place on the grid once Lewis Hamilton’s grid penalty for an engine change was applied to the qualifying results.
He passed the yellow flags in the opening session of qualifying and was reported to the stewards after the session.
Such incidents usually incur a penalty as double-waved yellow flags are used to warn drivers of a hazard on track, which can include marshals attending to a crashed car.
But after reviewing the evidence of the Alonso case, the stewards decided the Alpine driver had slowed enough and not set a « meaningful » lap time after passing the flags.
« It was evident that the driver fulfilled the requirement of reducing speed significantly after the double yellow flags were displayed and therefore complied with the provisions set out in Art. 2.5.5.b) of the FIA International Sporting Code, » the stewards said in a statement. « Nonetheless, Note 7.1 of the Race Director’s Event Notes require drivers not to set a meaningful lap time in a double yellow flag situation.
« Taking into account the fact that the yellow flag situation occurred at the time the driver started his first timed lap of the session and noting that the driver was fully convinced that he did not set a meaningful lap time as his next flying lap was approximately 3.5 seconds faster than the one when the yellow flag situation occurred, the Stewards are satisfied that the driver complied with the relevant regulations and take no further action. »
https://www.espn.com/f1/story/_/id/32366358/fernando-alonso-escapes-grid-penalty-turkey
