Alpine drivers Franco Colapinto and Pierre Gasly have apologized for losing the team a double points finish at the Formula 1 Mexican Grand Prix, with both receiving penalties for yellow flag violations.
Colapinto and Gasly were eighth and 10th at the finish line, then promoted to seventh and ninth when Oscar Piastri was hit with a 10-second post-race penalty for clashing with Arvid Lindblad at Turn 1.
But those eight points were lost as both drivers failed to respect yellow flag rules after Piastri’s incident with Lindblad.
Colapinto received a 10-second penalty for passing a single waved yellow flag and failing to slow down sufficiently.
Colapinto and Alpine “presented telemetry and photographic evidence claiming that it demonstrated that (Colapinto) had complied with the regulations which state that the driver must reduce speed and be prepared to change direction.”
However, this “did not convince” the stewards that Colapinto had reduced his speed sufficiently when passing the single yellow flag.
He was allowed to speed while crossing the double yellow flag in the previous sector due to “sufficient doubts that the driver had sufficient warning to comply with the requirements”.
But the 10-second penalty for his yellow flag infraction drops him to 15th place.
His teammate Gasly received an even harsher penalty as he was given a stop-and-go penalty which was converted into a 30-second lost time, leaving him 17th as the last driver classified.
Alpine and Gasly “claimed that the driver had made a significant reduction in speed in the double yellow flag sector; however, a detailed examination of the telemetry and that of other cars passing in this sector led the stewards to conclude that the small reduction observed was not sufficient to meet the requirements of the regulations.”
Gasly’s penalty is heavier because it is a double yellow flag infraction, so he also gets two penalty points.
Although Alpine defended its drivers’ cause during the stewards’ hearings, both apologized in the team’s post-race press release.
“I’m sorry to the team for the yellow flag infraction, it was my mistake that obviously prevented us from scoring points,” Gasly said. “There are a few things to look at from our side, because I felt we could have been a lot higher if we hadn’t had certain problems. It wasn’t a good day for me, there’s a lot to think about.”
“I’m sorry to everyone in the team for what happened under the yellow flag,” Colapinto said. “Although it’s hard to truly understand, it was my mistake in the car.”
Their penalties put Liam Lawson, who started from the pit lane, in seventh place, meaning a further six points for Racing Bulls which puts them 35 points clear of Alpine in their battle for fifth place in the Constructors’ Championship.
The decision also promotes Gabriel Bortoleto and Isack Hadjar to points in eighth and ninth places.
And that means Ryo Hirakawa scores a point in his surprise debut for Haas in 10th place.
Gn sports
