George Russell has been handed a suspended fine after throwing his car’s head restraint onto the track following his retirement from the Canadian Grand Prix.
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The stewards found Russell breached article 12.2.1.h of the International Sporting Code, which prohibits “any unsafe act or failure to take reasonable measures, thus resulting in an unsafe situation.”
Russell removed and threw the cockpit surround from his car onto the track at the exit of turn nine after suffering a power unit failure while leading the race. At the time, he had been engaged in a close battle with his teammate and championship rival Andrea Kimi Antonelli.
Russell apologised to the stewards for his actions. “The driver explained that he was extremely frustrated having failed to finish the race and expressed his embarrassment as what subsequently followed,” the stewards noted.
“He apologised to the stewards for his action and acknowledged that it did not set a good example and offered to apologise publicly. The stewards acknowledged this and accepted his apology.”
The stewards imposed a €5,000 fine, suspended for 12 months provided Russell commits no further similar breaches during that period.
Antonelli went on to win the race and extended his championship lead to 43 points.
The stewards also decided not to penalise Liam Lawson or Nico Hülkenberg after the pair crossed Safety Car Line One in the wrong order during the formation lap. Lawson briefly overtook Hülkenberg when the latter moved away slowly from the grid, and Hülkenberg said he was unable to safely reclaim his position before the line.
Both drivers began the race from their correct grid slots, so the stewards opted against enforcing the mandatory stop-and-go penalties. “The stewards consider this penalty to be extremely harsh and not proportionate to a breach that was relatively minor in effect and impact. Accordingly the stop and go penalty is suspended using the authority vested in the stewards under ISC Article 12.4.6,” they said.
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