09/10/2022
NEWS STORY
Pierre Gasly has been handed a 20 second time penalty for speeding under Red Flag conditions.
The stewards heard from the Frenchman and a team representative following today's race and also reviewed video and telemetry evidence.
After passing the scene of the earlier incident involving Carlos Sainz, Gasly continued under the red flag situation, at speeds which exceeded 200 km/h (124 mph) on multiple occasions, and which reached 251 km/h (156 mph) at one point.
According to the stewards, Gasly conceded that he now understands that there could have been marshals or obstacles on the track, and admitted that he was too fast.
However, in mitigation of penalty, the stewards took into account that although the speed could not by any measure be regarded as "slow" as required in the regulations, it was slower that the maximum speed that could be achieved under the conditions.
They also - wait for it - took into account the "shock" Gasly experienced on seeing a truck on the racing line in the corner of the incident.
Nonetheless, Gasly was handed a 20 time penalty and had 2 penalty points added to his licence, bringing his 12 month total to 9.
The one remaining question being, who gets penalised for that "truck on the racing line"?
Check out our Sunday gallery from Suzuka here.