Kimi Räikkönnen’s penalty upheld after FIA review

During this weekend’s Portimao Grand Prix, the Alfa Romeo team had exercised its right to request a review of the penalty imposed on Kimi Räikkönen after the Imola race 15 days ago.

During the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix, the Finnish world champion spun in turn 3, the lap before the race restarted under a red flag. The new rules introduced in 2018 state that drivers can regain their original position as long as it is done before the safety car’s first line. Kimi Räikkönen, who did not retake his position when he was entitled to do so, thereby penalizing himself, was also sanctioned by the stewards with a 10-second stop & go penalty converted into a 30-second penalty when applied after the race.

The Swiss team estimated that the penalty was unfair and, within the framework of the International Sporting Code, it requested the right to a review of the case based on new evidence. The review was accepted, as its interpretation was based on previous examples seen in F3 and F2, but never in Formula 1 since the new regulations were put in place in 2018.

Although the FIA stewards acknowledged that there was ambiguity in the restart procedure, they deemed that there was not enough evidence to overturn the decision.

Although the stewards understand why the driver acted as he did, the stewards maintain their initial decision that the driver committed an infringement of Article 42.6 by not regaining his original position during the safety car period,” the FIA statement reads.

« The commissioners maintain their initial decision »

As a result, the decision and the original results are upheld, Kimi Räikkönen remains downgraded from ninth to thirteenth place in the final rankings of the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix, leaving a bitter taste for him, as well as for Alfa Romeo, not understanding the logic of the FIA.