The FIA has explained why it issued Lando Norris a stop-and-go penalty in the Formula 1 Qatar Grand Prix along with its management of Safety Car procedures.
A loose wing mirror flying off of Alex Albon’s Williams set off a chain reaction that altered the course of the Qatar GP on Sunday.
One impact was felt keenly by Norris, who was punished with a 10-second stop-and-go penalty for failing to slow through yellow flags at Turn 1 where the mirror lay in the middle of the track.
The penalty dropped Norris from second to 15th and he was forced to fight through the pack to pick up a single point.
McLaren has called for a review into the severity of the punishment, but the FIA stands firm by its decision.
“The penalty was in accordance with the penalty guidelines circulated to the teams on 19 February 2024,” a statement read on Monday.
“A double yellow flag infringement is considered a serious compromise of safety, which is why such offences carry such a severe penalty.”
Qatar Safety Car delay ‘normal practice’ says FIA
Albon’s wing mirror fled stage-right on Lap 30 of the Grand Prix and recently-appointed Race Director Rui Marques responded by issuing yellow flags at Turn 1 of the Lusail International Circuit.
It took four laps until Sauber’s Valtteri Bottas clattered over the mirror, spreading debris across the track.
Moments later, both Carlos Sainz and Lewis Hamilton incurred punctures – although it’s not known whether the debris was the direct cause.
Regardless, at this point, a Safety Car was then called into action to neutralise the race and many speculated why it was left so late.
“Normal practice is for the safety car not to be deployed if there is a small amount of debris, and off the racing line,” the FIA said.
“The extensive debris after a car hit the mirror and the punctures that occurred shortly after forced the decision on a safety car
“A VSC would not have been a solution, as the cars remain spread-out and there is not sufficient time for a marshal to clear the debris.”
However, this doesn’t mean that the FIA is going to dig its heels in and handle such events in the same manner moving forward.
Instead, the FIA is willing to collaborate constructively with teams to review the process.
“The FIA constantly reviews its methods and processes and will analyse further the specific scenario, and discuss it with the teams, in order to see whether in the future a different course of action needs to be taken,” the governing body wrote.
A chaotic race in Qatar turned on its head for many with the introduction of the Safety Car and uncharacteristically, Max Verstappen was almost caught napping upon the restart that occurred with the second Safety Car intervention.
The reason was confusion as the Safety Car lights failed ahead of the race restart, another issue the FIA clarified in its statement.
“All teams were verbally advised that the SC would be coming in, so the restart took place in the normal fashion,” it said.
“While the reason for the malfunction was identified and fixed, out of caution, the safety car was swapped in time for its third deployment.”
READ MORE – McLaren: FIA should seriously consider fairness in F1 amid Lando Norris Qatar penalty
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