FIA launches double investigation after Azerbaijan GP incidents
The FIA acted quickly after pre-race incidents
Isack Hadjar and Carlos Sainz will face the FIA stewards at the F1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix following a pair of pre-race incidents.
The race had not even begun before the Red Bull and Williams drivers found themselves in hot water.
Isack Hadjar and Carlos Sainz face FIA investigation
Everything in F1 is heavily regulated, including the laps to the grid, and where drivers are permitted to complete practice starts when leaving the pits.
It is this aspect that caught out both Hadjar and Sainz on Saturday, with the pair informed that they would face a post-race investigation before the lights had gone out.
For Sainz, this leaves him at risk of a second penalty of the weekend, after he received a five-place grid drop for failing to slow for yellow flags in qualifying.
Having scored a point in 10th place, Sainz will hope to avoid a penalty and keep his point.
On that occasion, he had attempted a ‘global lift’, but still set his fastest time through the relevant sector. Due to this, the stewards gave him the maximum penalty, believing there were no mitigating circumstances.
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Hadjar enjoyed a strong return to racing action after sitting out the last three weekends with a wrist injury.
Having qualified in fourth place, the Frenchman was the lead Red Bull on the grid, with Max Verstappen in eighth.
On the run to Turn 1 on lap seven, Red Bull reversed the places of its drivers, promoting Verstappen into a podium position.
The pair finished in second and third places.
The FIA stewards have a range of sanctions that can be applied, ranging from a reprimand to time penalties and penalty points on a driver’s licence.
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