The FIA has scheduled Alpine's appeal hearing for Thursday at 12pm UK time, reviewing the pit-lane speeding penalties handed to Pierre Gasly during the Monaco Grand Prix. Gasly received two five-second penalties for exceeding the 60 km/h limit, dropping him from third to seventh place in the final classification.
Gasly was visibly emotional after the race, describing himself as heartbroken and insisting he did nothing wrong. He triple-checked with his team that the pit limiter was activated correctly before the designated line. The French driver felt robbed of a podium opportunity in front of his home crowd, losing nine crucial championship points.
Other drivers including Lewis Hamilton and George Russell also questioned their penalties, with Russell suggesting a software problem caused the issue. Russell actually suffered worse consequences after Mercedes botched serving his initial penalty, resulting in a drive-through penalty that dropped him from third to outside the points.
The controversy stems from Monaco's tight pit entry potentially creating higher average speeds for drivers taking a tighter line. Alpine's appeal focuses solely on Gasly's penalties rather than challenging all driver sanctions. Given the precedent and the impracticality of reinstating multiple drivers, Gasly's third-place finish will likely remain unchanged despite the emotional appeal.
Source: Sky Sports Champions League · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing