During the free practice 2, Lewis Hamilton was in a dangerous situation, creating a risk for Logan Sargeant who was approaching on a flying lap while the Mercedes was in the racing line.
For failing to properly inform their driver, it is the team that receives a penalty with a warning and especially a €15,000 fine.
The stewards heard the driver of car 44 (Lewis Hamilton), the driver of car 2 (Logan Sargeant), team representatives, and reviewed positioning/signaling data, videos, radio communications between the team and the drivers, as well as onboard videos. This explains the statement.
They concluded that car 44 hindered car 2 at turn 11. As a result, car 2 had to take evasive action by going off track to avoid a collision. Had it not done so, there would have been a serious high-speed accident.
« Listening to the team’s radio, it became clear to us that the team of car 44 did not notify their driver that car 2 was coming for a fast lap. This was a serious failure on the part of the team, especially given the speeds on this circuit and the nature of turn 11, which is at the end of a series of fast corners where the driver’s visibility is reduced. »
This dangerous situation has therefore triggered a warning for Lewis Hamilton and a fine for the team.
« Therefore, we issue a warning to the driver and impose a fine of €15,000 on the team. »
