FIA confirms double British GP warning after investigation

Alex Albon and Arvid Lindblad have both been warned by the FIA after separate breaches in sprint qualifying at the British Grand Prix on Friday.

Albon and Lindblad found themselves under investigation in the aftermath of Friday’s sprint qualifying session at Silverstone.

FIA stewards warn Alex Albon, Arvid Lindblad after British GP breaches

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The pair were summoned for failing to follow the race director’s instructions by driving unnecessarily slowly during the session.

The FIA has confirmed that the pair have received warnings, with it emerging that the energy management demands of the F1 2026 cars contributed to the breaches.

The stewards’ report for Albon read: “The Stewards heard from the driver of Car 23 (Alexander Albon), the team representative and reviewed positioning/marshalling system data, video, timing, telemetry, team radio and in-car video evidence.

“Car 23 exceeded the maximum time between Safety Car Line 2 and Safety Car Line 1 during SQ1 by 4.6 seconds on a cool down lap.

“The driver explained that Silverstone is particularly demanding in terms of energy harvesting and that, on this lap, the car was energy-limited, which affected his usage of the throttle.

“He stated that he attempted to recover the delta towards the end of the lap but realised too late that he was above the prescribed time and accepted that an element of human error was involved.

“The Stewards recognise that the 2026 cars require significantly more active energy management than in previous seasons and accept that this can materially contribute to exceedance of the SC2–SC1 time, particularly at a circuit such as Silverstone.

“The Stewards therefore accept that the energy management demands of the car were a contributing factor in this case and take that into account as mitigation.

“However, the Stewards do not consider that the general demands of energy harvesting and battery preparation can operate as a standing justification for exceeding the prescribed maximum time.

“In this case, no cars were allowed through and the driver accepted that he realised too late that he was above the prescribed time and that human error was a contributing factor.

“The Stewards were therefore not satisfied that the exceedance was fully explained by the specific circumstances of the lap.”

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The verdict for Lindblad read: “The Stewards heard from the driver of Car 41 (Arvid Lindblad), the team representative and reviewed positioning/marshalling system data, video, timing, telemetry, team radio and in-car video evidence.

“Car 41 exceeded the maximum time between Safety Car Line 2 and Safety Car Line 1 during SQ1 by 14.4 seconds on a cool down lap.

“The driver explained that during the lap he was occupied with switch changes and energy management and was also seeking to improve the process for Qualifying.

“He further explained that, after being overtaken by other cars, he attempted to create a gap and later had to remain behind other cars.

“Car 41 allowed three cars to pass during the lap. The driver accepted that he realised too late that he was above the prescribed time and that he could have managed the lap better.

“The Stewards recognise that the 2026 cars require significantly more active energy management than in previous seasons and accept that this can materially contribute to exceedance of the SC2–SC1 time, particularly at a circuit such as Silverstone.

“The Stewards also recognise that allowing other cars through may, in appropriate circumstances, justify an exceedance of the prescribed time.

“The Stewards therefore accept that both traffic management and the energy management demands of the car were relevant mitigating factors in this case.

“However, the Stewards do not consider that energy management can operate as a standing justification for such exceedances and each case must be assessed on its own facts.

“In this case, while Car 41 allowed three cars to pass, the Stewards were not satisfied that the combination of those overtakes, the energy management demands of the car and the other explanations advanced fully accounted for an exceedance of 14.4 seconds.

“The driver also accepted that he realised too late that he was above the prescribed time and could have managed the lap better.

“In light of the mitigating circumstances and to be consistent with similar incidents earlier this year the Stewards impose a Warning.

“The Stewards nevertheless make clear that similar cases will continue to be carefully examined and that energy management, by itself, will not be accepted as sufficient justification for future exceedances of the prescribed maximum time.”

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