Unfortunate news for Oliver Bearman, Alexander Albon, and Liam Lawson. Bearman crossed the finish line in eighth place during the sprint race in Miami, but lost this position after the session due to a five-second time penalty for an ‘unsafe release’. In addition to Bearman, Alexander Albon also received a five-second time penalty for driving too slowly behind the safety car. Lawson was also penalized with five seconds, due to the incident with Fernando Alonso. Charles Leclerc got away with a reprimand for continuing to drive on the track with visible damage.
Bearman received his time penalty for an ‘unsafe release’ after his pit stop. Like everyone else, the driver started the race on intermediate tires, but when the rain stopped and the track quickly dried up, many drivers dived into the pit stops to switch to slicks, including Bearman. As soon as Haas finished the pit stop, the pit crew let the driver go too early, right in front of Sauber driver Nico Hülkenberg. The German had to ‘brake and swerve’ to avoid a crash, according to the stewards’ report.
Bearman drops to fourteenth place due to the time penalty, thus losing the point he had earned. The penalty leaves a bitter aftertaste for Haas, as Esteban Ocon also failed to score any points. During the shortened session, Bearman had impressively climbed from the last spot on the grid to eighth place.
More Penalties
In addition to Bearman, Alexander Albon also receives a five-second time penalty after the sprint. The British Thai driver consequently drops in the standings and out of the points. He drove too slowly during the safety car period, and now loses his fourth place. Meanwhile, Charles Leclerc got away with a reprimand. The Monegasque was investigated by the stewards because he continued to drive on the track with visible damage after his crash before the start of the sprint race. Finally, Liam Lawson also received a penalty for the incident with Fernando Alonso. The New Zealander hit the Spaniard’s right rear wheel, ending Alonso’s race. Lawson also receives a penalty point for the incident.
All in all, all the penalties mean that Yuki Tsunoda now inherits sixth place (and scores points for Red Bull), Kimi Antonelli takes seventh, and Pierre Gasly earns the last point with eighth place.
