Huge fine for Carlos Sainz after his crash in qualifying
In addition to having shortened his Q3 by finishing in the wall at the start of the session, Carlos Sainz was fined 25,000 € for crossing the track on foot during the Singapore GP. The Spaniard is also expected to have to change several parts on his car, which could result in further penalties.
The double pole position – victory of last year already seems like a distant memory for Carlos Sainz. During the qualifying session of the Singapore Grand Prix, the Spanish driver lost control of his car at the beginning of the third session, while he was starting a fast lap. The fault lay with the soft tires being too cold. With the red flag out, Sainz had no choice but to return to his pit for the rest of the session.
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The Ferrari having gone off track in the last turn of the lap, the Spaniard directly crossed the track on foot to find his way back to the pits. However, no marshal had given him permission to do so. A potentially very dangerous situation for the FIA, violating Article 26.7 b) of the Formula 1 Sporting Regulations.
A financial fine, before other penalties?
Carlos Sainz is therefore fined a heavy financial penalty by the FIA for his breach of regulations. The driver is fined 25,000 euros, with 12,500 euros suspended for the rest of the 2024 season, provided there is no other infringement of the same nature, the institution’s statement said. A similar sanction to that received by Lewis Hamilton after the Qatar Grand Prix in 2023.
🚩DRAPEAU ROUGE 🚩
Sortie de piste pour Carlos Sainz 💥#SingaporeGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/SO3CoYiTtx
— CANAL+ F1® (@CanalplusF1) September 21, 2024
Especially, the back of the Ferrari heavily hit the safety barriers. Sainz might be forced to change some elements of his car for Sunday’s race. In case of gearbox or power unit replacement, the Scuderia driver would be at risk of a penalty. He currently holds the 10th position on the grid.
