Ryo Hirakawa has scored a point in his first race as a Formula 1 driver after taking the chequered flag in 13th place.
The Haas driver moved up three places due to penalties for both Alpine drivers and McLaren’s Oscar Piastri. The stewards ruled Franco Colapinto and Pierre Gasly both failed to reduce their speed sufficiently in response to yellow flags following Piastri’s collision with Arvid Lindblad.Gasly received a stop-and-go penalty – one of the harshest sanctions available to the stewards – and two penalty points on his licence. “The driver and team representative claimed that the driver had made a significant reduction in speed in the double yellow flag sector,” observed the stewards, “however a detailed examination of the telemetry, and that of other cars passing through that sector, led the stewards to conclude that the small reduction noted was not sufficient to satisfy the requirements
of the regulations.”
Colapinto received a more lenient penalty as the stewards accepted there was doubt over whether he had sufficient warning about the yellow flag. They gave him a 10-second time penalty and a single penalty point on his licence.
“The driver and team presented telemetry and photographic evidence claiming it demonstrated that the driver had complied with the regulations which state that the driver must reduce speed and be prepared to change direction,” the stewards explained.
“A detailed examination of the telemetry and onboard camera failed to satisfy the stewards that the driver had sufficiently reduced speed through that single yellow sector.
“In relation to the previous double yellow flag sector the Stewards determined that there was sufficient doubt that the driver had sufficient warning in order to comply with the requirements, so did not determine that there was any breach in relation to that sector.”
The penalties dropped Colapinto to 15th place and Gasly to 17th. Hirakawa was one of four drivers to benefit: Liam Lawson moved up to seventh place while three drivers who originally finished outside the top 10 all scored points. Gabrial Bortoleto took eighth, Isack Hadjar ninth and Hirakawa 10th.
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