Hülkenberg penalized on the grid in Abu Dhabi

After his good performance in Q3 at the 2024 Abu Dhabi F1 Grand Prix, allowing him to set the fourth fastest time in the qualifying session, Nico Hülkenberg was penalized by the stewards for an infraction and will finally start seventh.

The German was under investigation for not having respected the notes from the race director and in particular article 12.4 which states that: “Overtaking is prohibited in the pit exit lane, unless a car is slowing down due to an obvious problem.”

As part of the investigation carried out by the stewards, they therefore judged the Haas driver guilty of the offense – he overtook two cars in the tunnel at the exit of the pits -, with the following justification: “The driver did not dispute during the hearing that he had not followed the instructions of the race director, but he stated that he had no choice but to break the rules in order to to take a walk.”

“If the stewards recognize that the position of the team's garages limits their possibilities of sending cars onto the track, this can never serve as an excuse to break a regulation. The ban on overtaking in certain areas such as the race track pits or, in this case, pit exit, is implemented to prevent potentially dangerous situations and the stewards therefore determine that a step back on the grid is justified in this case.”

With the three penalty positions for Hülkenberg, Max Verstappen, Pierre Gasly and George Russell all gain one position.