McLaren has learned the verdict of its protest regarding the Austrian Grand Prix qualifying results.
After the investigation, the stewards decided to uphold the original decision, meaning Oscar Piastri’s lap time will not be reinstated. Therefore, he will start Sunday’s race in seventh position.
The Woking team lodged the appeal after Piastri had his final lap deleted at the Red Bull Ring, dropping him from third to seventh.
The Australian driver reportedly exceeded the track limits at Turn 6, with race direction removing his lap time – a decision the 23-year-old described as embarrassing in his post-session reaction.
McLaren team principal Andrea Stella told media he had requested further clarification from the FIA before the claim was officially confirmed.
The decision document of the commissioners states: “The complaint is rejected as inadmissible.”
The claim was deemed invalid for three reasons:
— It was addressed to the race director and not to the president of the commissioners (article 13.5.1 ISC)
— It did not specify any relevant regulation (Article 13.4.1 ISC)
— She did not specify against whom the complaint was filed (Article 13.4.1 ISC)
Therefore, “the claim does not meet several of the criteria required for admissibility of a claim,” according to the decision document and was duly found inadmissible. The team also lost their €2,000 deposit for lodging a protest.
Tsunoda sanctioned for his insult
Yuki Tsunoda has informed him of the outcome of an investigation into his alleged use of discriminatory language during qualifying for the Austrian Grand Prix.
The 24-year-old driver was found guilty of breaching Article 12.2.1.k of the FIA International Sporting Code.
The Japanese driver was fined €40,000, of which €20,000 is suspended for the remainder of the 2024 season, provided that no offences of a similar nature occur.
The RB F1 driver was caught saying “These guys are really retarded” on team radio about Guanyu Zhou overtaking him on the pit lane during Q1.
According to the official decision document, the commissioners said: “During Q1, when car 22 (Tsunoda) was queuing in the fast lane and another car entered the fast lane in front of him, the driver was heard making a statement on the car’s radio. team using offensive language.”
“During the hearing, the pilot apologized and explained that since English was not his native language, he had not known until the end of the session what the meaning of the words used in English was. .”
“He said he was horrified when he learned of this. He maintained that his understanding of the words was different, but acknowledged that this should not be taken as an excuse for what he did.”
“The stewards appreciate the honesty of the driver, but highlight the fact that the words used are offensive and totally inappropriate. The fact of having used such words on a platform accessible to the public constitutes a misconduct as defined in Article 20 of the International Sporting Code.”
“Given the circumstances, the stewards consider that a severe fine is necessary, but also take into account the driver’s sincere remorse and his offer to publicly apologize and decide for these reasons to suspend part of the fine imposed. “
