Alonso and Sainz incidents prompt changes to Formula 1’s rules · RaceFans

Formula 1 has revised its regulations following incidents involving Fernando Alonso and Carlos Sainz Jnr earlier this year.

The two cases occured during the Chinese Grand Prix weekend in April. The first followed Fernando Alonso’s clash with Sainz during the sprint race.

Alonso was given a 10-second time penalty for the incident. The sanction made no difference to his finishing position as he retired from the race.

Drivers who incur penalties then retire from races are ordinarily given grid drops for subsequent rounds, as happened to Esteban Ocon in Monaco this year. However Alonso’s incident occured in a sprint race and F1’s rules did not allow his penalty to be adjusted in this way.

The stewards noted this flaw in the regulations at the time. “We note that the language in the regulations as to when a car has retired and the resultant consequences on penalties that may be imposed or served, especially when that car is otherwise classified, is somewhat unclear and we would recommend that the FIA considers making the necessary amendments to bring greater clarity to this issue,” they wrote when explaining Alonso’s penalty.

This has been addressed in an update to the Sporting Regulations published today. A revised clause now states: “If any of [above] penalties above are imposed upon a driver, and that driver is unable to serve the penalty due to being unclassified in the sprint session or the race in the case of a) or b) or due to retirement from the sprint session or the race in the case of c) or d), the stewards may impose a grid place penalty on the driver at their next race.”

Aston Martin were dissatisfied with Alonso’s penalty and later tried, unsuccessfully, to have it overturned. They also raised a protest after Sainz crashed later that day during the qualifying session for the grand prix. The session was red-flagged but Sainz was able to drive his car away and continue.

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Aston Martin protested the results of qualifying, arguing Sainz should not have been allowed to continue under the rule which states: “Any driver whose car stops on the track during the qualifying session or the sprint qualifying will not be permitted to take any further part in that session.” They were also unsuccessful on this occasion, but the stewards have now revised the rule in question.

It now states: “Any driver whose car stops in any area other than the pit lane during the qualifying session or the sprint qualifying session and receives physical assistance will not be permitted to take any further part in that session.”

As Sainz did not receive physical assistance when he rejoined the track, his actions would also have been legal under the revised regulation.

In a further alteration to the rules, a new clause has been added defining a procedure for stopping a race when the pit entrance is blocked, meaning drivers cannot enter the pit lane as usual.

“In exceptional circumstances, for reasons of safety the pit entry may be closed before cars have returned to the pit lane,” it states. “In such circumstances all cars must proceed slowly to the starting grid, the first car to arrive on the grid should occupy pole position and others should fill the remaining grid positions in the order they arrive. The remainder of the procedures detailed in Articles 57.3, 57.4, 57.5 and 58 shall remain unchanged, but will be conducted on the grid instead of in the fast lane.”

The FIA World Motorsport Council also rubber-stamped other updates to the regulations including new rules allowing teams to test ‘mule cars’ to prepare for 2026.

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