Lewis Hamilton was demoted three places on the grid for impeding Sergio Perez in qualifying for the Dutch Grand Prix.
Hamilton got in the way of Perez at Turn 9 in Q1, forcing the Mexican to use two sets of soft tyres, which put him at a disadvantage later in qualifying.
The seven-time world champion was only able to qualify, but will drop three places on the starting grid.
Race control stated: “The driver of car 44, who was on an in lap, was informed by the team that car 11 was coming on a fast lap as he entered turn 8. He then came off the line at the exit of turn 8 with the intention of making way for car 11. However, by the time car 11 arrived, car 44 had already entered turn 9 and rejoined the racing line at the exit of turn 9, clearly impeding car 11.
“The race directors conclude that although there was a warning from the team and the driver attempted to avoid the other car, he could have braked harder to avoid obstructing the other car. They therefore consider the obstruction to be unnecessary in terms of the regulations. Therefore, one starting grid position will be moved back in line with previous decisions.”
At the time of writing, Hamilton will start Sunday’s race from 15th place on the grid, but this could change if Alex Albon is disqualified.
Perez’s view
His wish went to Sergio Perez, who described the 2024 race management as “really strict”.
“He did his best (to get out of the way), but unfortunately we were just in the wrong place at the wrong time,” Perez commented after qualifying.
“The race directors have been really strict this year and I’ve had much worse penalties, so unfortunately I expect him to get a penalty.
“I think he did his best (to get out of the way) and probably should have been given a little more (leeway) in that regard, but it is what it is.”
