Carlos Sainz’s milestone qualifying efficiency for the Formulation 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix has been undone after the Spaniard was hit with a five-place grid penalty.
The Williams driver made it into Q3 in Baku on Friday, the primary time that the Grove-based squad has reached it this season.
Sainz was in a position to finish it in ninth place, signalling marked enchancment for the workforce, which has introduced a raft of upgrades for the race.
However a yellow flag infringement was famous, after Lando Norris went off the monitor throughout Q3, and Sainz, who was within the neighborhood, was investigated for failing to sufficiently decelerate.
Sainz was summoned to the stewards to provide his interpretation of the scenario, and confirmed he was conscious of the yellow flags being waved.
“SAI defined that he meant to exhibit a discount in velocity throughout the yellow space as a complete. He said that he didn’t contemplate it mandatory to cut back velocity on the straight and as a substitute meant to exhibit his response when approaching and exiting Flip 3. He thought of this to be a ‘world raise’ masking the consecutive yellow sectors,” the stewards’ doc learn.
“He additional defined that the automotive which had initially triggered the yellow was not within the run-off space and that he anticipated the yellow flags to be withdrawn.
“The stewards didn’t settle for this interpretation. The place consecutive marshalling sectors are topic to yellow flag circumstances, a driver should exhibit a big response to cut back velocity in every particular person yellow marshalling sector. A discount in a subsequent sector can not retrospectively fulfill the requirement relevant to the previous yellow sector.”
The doc concluded: “The stewards due to this fact decide that SAI did not sufficiently cut back velocity underneath the only yellow flag in Marshalling Sector 4. The usual penalty underneath the Penalty Pointers for this infringement throughout Qualifying is a drop of 5 grid positions.”
Sainz will now begin 14th, with Franco Colapinto elevated to ninth, and Oliver Bearman taking on the ultimate place within the prime 10.
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