The official decision from Formula 1’s FIA stewards has provided clarity on why neither Ferrari driver faced penalties for alleged rule violations following the qualifying session of the Italian Grand Prix, which took place earlier today and saw Carlos Sainz secure pole position at the Monza circuit in front of the Tifosi.
Both Carlos Sainz and his Maranello teammate, Charles Leclerc, were under scrutiny as they vied to secure Ferrari’s fourth pole position in the last six Grands Prix at Monza. Ultimately, the Spaniard clinched pole, with the Monegasque finishing closely in third place.
While they celebrated their on-track achievements, it was announced that no further actions would be taken, allowing both drivers to maintain their positions on Sunday’s starting grid. The investigation centered on whether they had violated one of the race director’s event notes, particularly a specific provision introduced for Monza to address potential issues of slow-lap congestion during qualifying.
The event notes stipulated that, “for the safe and orderly conduct of the event, unless in exceptional circumstances accepted as such by the stewards, any driver exceeding 1m41s from the second safety car line to the first safety car line on any lap during and after the end of the qualifying session, including in-laps and out-laps, may be deemed to be going unnecessarily slowly.”
Both Ferrari men were scrutinized because they exceeded the 1m41s limit during the initial qualifying segment.
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However, the wording of the event notes, particularly the use of the word “may” and the phrase “exceptional circumstances,” left room for the possibility of avoiding penalties despite surpassing the 1m41s threshold, and this is precisely what occurred in the end.
The stewards explained their decision by stating, “Both drivers maintained speeds at or above the required level to stay under 1m41s for the majority of the circuit, particularly on the straights.” They further noted that both drivers took appropriate actions to slow down and move to the side of the track to avoid obstructing other drivers. In both cases, they did so significantly, allowing four other drivers to pass while ensuring a clear track for them. Consequently, the stewards concluded that Sainz and Leclerc did not drive “unnecessarily slowly,” and their slight exceedance of the maximum time was attributable to their responsible actions.
Carlos Sainz elaborated on this during the post-qualifying press conference, saying, “I had to significantly reduce my speed to avoid impeding other cars on fast laps. It was nearly impossible to adhere to the delta provided by the race director because doing so would have hindered my competitors. So, I erred on the side of caution. I chose not to obstruct anyone, even if it meant being one or two seconds over the delta. Safety is more important than impeding someone.”
In Charles Leclerc’s case, he allowed an Alfa Romeo to pass at Curva Grande and was subsequently overtaken by a Williams, possibly assuming it was on a fast lap. After falling behind, the Monegasque’s speed was primarily determined by the Williams car, which, like Leclerc, was on a cooldown lap. Between the two Lesmos, he permitted a faster car to pass and on the straight leading to the Ascari chicane, he made way for another car. It was only as the Williams began to distance itself that he could gradually increase his pace on the approach to the final corner.
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