Ferrari fined 5000 Euros for dangerous maneuver

During the qualifications of the Dutch Grand Prix, we witnessed a misunderstanding on the track between Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari and Oscar Piastri’s McLaren. The McLaren driver was approaching at full speed towards the Ferrari, who was not warned on the radio and unintentionally blocked Piastri. The McLaren driver had to go onto the grass to avoid an accident.

The FIA officials’ statement explains that « driver of car 55 (Carlos Sainz), driver of car 81 (Oscar Piastri), team representatives » were summoned and they « reviewed the positioning/ranking system data, video footage, team radio, and evidence from onboard video images. »

« Sainz was coming out of the pits and immediately moved towards the racing line before turn 2. As a result, Piastri, who was on the track, had to take evasive action and was partially forced off the track and onto the grass. According to the stewards, this was a ‘potentially dangerous’ maneuver, and the accident was only avoided thanks to Piastri’s actions. »

The stewards explained that Bottas’s team – who was just ahead of Sainz – properly warned their driver via radio about Piastri’s arrival, unlike Ferrari.

« In comparison, Sainz was warned not to cross the white line at the pit exit, and was only informed of Piastri’s arrival when he was already next to him. » details the statement.

Sainz explained that he briefly saw Piastri and estimated that he was on a slow lap, but then did not see him in his rearview mirror due to the angle of the corner. He also explained that he was trying to reach the dry racing line as quickly as possible.

Given that Sainz could not judge the arrival speed of Piastri, it was his team that was deemed responsible for the “potentially dangerous” situation.