Ocon considered responsible for the collision with Hamilton because of a very vague rule
During the Monaco Grand Prix, Esteban Ocon made contact with Lewis Hamilton. Penalized with a 5-second penalty that puts him out of the points, no clear explanation has been given regarding his exact responsibility. Details.
We are on lap 18, Hamilton switches to intermediate tires and quickly catches up to Esteban Ocon, who is equipped with wet tires and is slower. In Monaco, it is difficult to overtake, and Hamilton gets stuck behind the Alpine driver. At the first corner, Hamilton moves up alongside Ocon’s rear wheels on the inside of the turn, but Ocon cuts across without really giving him any space. Hamilton could have cut the corner to take the escape route, but instead chooses to collide with Ocon.
No serious damage for the two drivers but the incident is noted by the race officials. Several long minutes later and a red flag after, the penalty is imposed: Ocon is deemed responsible for their collision and receives a 5-second time penalty added to his race time. Ocon finishes 8th but will drop to 12th place after this penalty, scoring no points.
If the commentators were surprised by the decision, the FIA does not provide any information in its official document regarding the reason for Ocon’s responsibility. The statement specifies:
The infringement of article 2.d of chapter 4 of appendix L of the FIA sporting code. It is important to note that this is the FIA sporting code and not the F1 code. This code applies to all FIA drivers in addition to the F1 sporting code.
This article specifies that “causing a collision, repeated serious mistakes or clear lack of control of the car (such as going off track) will be reported to the Stewards and may result in penalties up to the disqualification of any affected driver.”
Ocon explained after the race to Canal+ microphone that he went to see the stewards to understand the exact reason and they told him that it was a new rule that they themselves are not really satisfied with.
The penalty statement continues by explaining: « The stewards reviewed the video evidence and noted that in turn 1, a significant portion of Lewis Hamilton’s car was alongside Esteban Ocon’s car, and therefore they are applying the guidelines of the 2022 driving standards, which state that Hamilton’s car should have had enough room in turn 1. »
The race commissioners this weekend, namely Garry Connelly, Andrew Mallalieu,
Derek Warwick and Jean-François Calmes – therefore deemed that Hamilton was close enough to Ocon to ask him to give up his position at turn 1.
Since 2022, indeed, when a driver attacks, they must be given enough space (1 car’s width) to be able to take their racing line. However, the rule does not explain at what height the driver must be in relation to the other car to be entitled to this space.
The drivers themselves would agree to apply this rule if the attacking car’s wing is at the level of the front train. However, the officials may judge otherwise.
