Oscar Piastri punishment decision confirmed by FIA after Abu Dhabi Grand Prix incident

Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

Piastri punishment decision confirmed by FIA after Abu Dhabi Grand Prix incident

The Australian was alleged to have impeded Pierre Gasly in qualifying

Chris Deeley

Saturday 25 November 2023 18:42

Oscar Piastri has avoided a penalty for impeding Pierre Gasly in qualifying for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

The Australian could have been hit with a grid penalty for the final race of the season after the stewards summoned him to a hearing after Saturday's session, but it was decided that he hadn't done anything to negatively impact the Frenchman's flying lap.

Gasly himself gave evidence to the stewards, insisting that the positioning of Piastri's car didn't actually affect his lap and that he wasn't impacted. Telemetry backed up that view, showing that the Alpine man had kept his foot buried as he passed the Australian and that he set a personal best mini-sector.

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Piastri set the third fastest time of the session to earn a place on the second row behind Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc, while Gasly squeaked through into Q3 but could only qualify 10th for Sunday's race.

Oscar Piastri performed strongly once again in Abu Dhabi qualifying

Pierre Gasly has had some ups and downs in his 2023 season

Oscar Piastri has been touted as a future F1 champion after his rookie performances

FIA statement on Piastri indicent

As with all decisions of this kind, the FIA released a statement explaining their decision-making process along with their final decision not to hand Piastri any punishment.

It read: "The Stewards heard from the driver of Car 81 (Oscar Piastri), the driver of Car 10 (Pierre Gasly), team representatives and reviewed positioning/marshalling system data, video, timing, telemetry, team radio and in-car video evidence.

"Telemetry of Car 10 showed the throttle was at 100% when Car 10 approached and overtook Car 81. The driver of Car 10 stated he had to make a minor direction change but it did not affect his lap.

"The driver of Car 10 stated that he was not impacted by Car 81, and the data showed he achieved his fastest mini-sector time at the point."

Max Verstappen FIA Charles Leclerc Oscar Piastri Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Pierre Gasly