Due to changes at Albert Park that have made the track much faster than in the past, the drivers warned that traffic could be a problem in qualifying for the Australian Grand Prix, and the reality is that they were not bad directed.
First, the stewards noted an investigation into Sergio Pérez for not slowing down on one of his laps after the yellow flags appeared, while later, Charles Leclerc, Guanyu Zhou and Yuki Tsunoda were also called to testify for a alleged unnecessarily slow driving.
In the first of the investigations, the stewards verified through telemetry that the Mexican driver had reduced his speed, so that finally the Red Bull driver received no reprimands or sanctions.
In the second case, the stewards of the Australian GP also let all those drivers who had allegedly violated one of the rules of the Formula 1 Sporting Regulations in 2022 escape without penalty.
This was the statement that the stewards published to communicate the decision made regarding the Monegasque Ferrari driver, who may start tomorrow from pole position:
“LEC (Leclerc) was on a lap that was meant to be a return lap to the pits, not a warm-up lap, which would not be subject to the minimum time restriction stipulated in the rules.”
“In the middle of said lap, he made the decision to pit. During the lap there was a lot of traffic and Leclerc tried to make sure that he did not prevent other drivers from braking during their fast laps. These efforts significantly decreased his speed and his lap time increased “.
“The stewards accept the driver’s justification for these actions, as they believe he acted at all times under the circumstances surrounding him and therefore no action will be taken.”
In the same way that Leclerc managed to avoid the penalty, Guanyu Zhou and Yuki Tsunoda also did the same, so tomorrow everyone will start according to their results in the classification.
However, Alex Albon did not have the same luck as his colleagues on the grid, as he was disqualified from qualifying after breaking some of the fuel-related rules at the end of Q1.
Lance Stroll was also penalized for being held at fault for his absurd accident with Latifi in Q1, although the three positions do not apply to the Aston Martin driver as he had qualified last. In fact, he wins a place with the disqualification of Albon, who will be able to run but will start last.
