05/11/2024
NEWS STORY
Lando Norris and George Russell have both been fined €5,000 and given reprimands for leaving the grid even though the aborted start signal had been given.
The Race Director initiated the aborted start procedure indicating that drivers should not leave the grid as Lance Stroll was off track in Turn 4 and needed to be recovered.
Although the signal was appropriately given the light panel illuminated as prescribed, and the teams notified by the messaging system, Norris and Russell left the grid and proceeded on a lap that they assumed to be an extra formation lap.
As they were on the front row of the grid this triggered some of the following drivers to take similar action.
The race director, realizing that for practical reasons all cars would now need to do an extra formation lap, gave an instruction to the teams for all cars to proceed and return to the grid to follow the correct aborted start procedure.
In the opinion of the stewards Norris and Russell precipitated the action of the drivers on the grid directly behind them and as a result both were fined €5,000 and given reprimands.
Though Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda, who were behind Norris and Russell, breached the regulations this was influenced by the drivers ahead of them and as such were not predominately responsible for the breach.
As such the stewards decided to take no further action against the RB pair having held the drivers immediately ahead as being at fault.
Check out our Sunday gallery from Sao Paulo here.