Four Formula 1 drivers will be visiting the Brazilian Grand Prix stewards for infringements in a fraught first qualifying session after the FIA’s clampdown on pitlane impeding.
Following multiple incidents in Mexico last weekend and other recent qualifying sessions, a new instruction has been included in the race director’s event notes at Interlagos.
"During shootout [sprint qualifying] and qualifying, drivers may create a gap between the pit exit lights and the SC2 line," reads the instruction.
"Any driver who wishes to do so must drive as far to the left as possible to allow other drivers to pass them on the right side of the pit exit road."
The first test of that new rule resulted in four drivers being summoned to the stewards for incidents in Q1.
George Russell, who qualified his Mercedes in sixth place, was summoned for allegedly “unnecessarily impeding cars exiting the pitlane” and failing to comply with the race director’s new instruction.
Alpine’s Pierre Gasly found Russell in his path when he was emerging out of the pitlane exit.
“This guy is f***ing dangerous,” he told his team.
Gasly was also summoned for his own alleged impeding, along with Alpine team-mate Esteban Ocon.
Sergio Perez was summoned to give his account of how he was “unnecessarily impeded by cars exiting the pitlane”.
