Zhou Guanyu penalized three places after obstructing Max Verstappen
Zhou Guanyu got in the way of Max Verstappen in Q1 at the Belgian Grand Prix on Saturday. But this will not affect his starting position on the grid on Sunday.
It was tense during the qualifying session this Saturday between Max Verstappen and Zhou Guanyu. The Chinese driver blocked the Dutch driver’s path at turn 17, causing the latter’s anger… And an investigation by the FIA, who summoned both drivers. They decided to penalize the driver with number 24.
The infraction was qualified as a violation of Article 37.5 of the FIA sporting regulations for Formula 1. After examining the evidence, including positional data, videos, telemetry, team radio communications, and onboard videos, the stewards concluded that Zhou had stayed on the racing line as Verstappen approached, despite not driving at full speed. As a result, the Dutch driver had to briefly lift off the accelerator to overtake the Sauber driver.
Sanction imposed on Zhou Guanyu
The stewards noted that the team had informed the driver of Verstappen’s presence behind him, but that the information provided was not precise enough. They reminded that it is the driver’s responsibility not to unnecessarily hinder other competitors. Therefore, they determined that Zhou had indeed unjustifiably impeded Verstappen, resulting in the application of the standard penalty.
Zhou Guanyu thus receives a three-place grid penalty for Sunday’s race. He qualified last during Saturday’s qualifying, but as Yuki Tsunoda is suffering a 60-place penalty (no joke) for multiple engine changes, he will therefore start… 19th, ahead of Yuki Tsunoda. Which means that the initial scenario remains unchanged.
