F1 Qatar Grand Prix: Lewis Hamilton, Max Verstappen and 15 other drivers under INVESTIGATION

A composite image of Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen — Photo: © IMAGO

Qatar Grand Prix Sprint

Hamilton, Verstappen and 15 other F1 drivers under INVESTIGATION at the Qatar Grand Prix

F1 sprint qualifying got underway at the Qatar Grand Prix

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Friday 29 November 2024 19:19 Updated: 21:53

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Lewis Hamilton, Max Verstappen and 15 other Formula 1 drivers are under investigation at the Qatar Grand Prix.

Mercedes star Hamilton and Red Bull rival Verstappen are among the 17 drivers that are under investigation after an alleged infraction during the sprint qualifying at the Lusail International Circuit.

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New FIA race director Rui Marques confirmed in an official document before the session that a minimum lap time of 1:40.0 must be followed in order to try and avoid the field bunching up during sessions.

It now appears that a host of drivers have fallen foul of that rule, with the stewards set to investigate the alleged infractions after the session.

Max Verstappen has already claimed the drivers' championship

17 drivers under FIA investigation in Qatar

Among the alleged infringers, both Red Bull drivers, both McLaren drivers and both Ferraris are under investigation amid a fierce championship battle.

Verstappen has already sealed drivers' championship success, achieved last time out at the Las Vegas GP, but there is a three-way fight for the constructors' championship.

McLaren, currently chasing a first constructors' title since 1998, lead Ferrari by 24 points going into the final two events, while Red Bull are 53 points behind McLaren in third.

George Russell, Kevin Magnussen, Lance Stroll, Pierre Gasly, Valtteri Bottas, Alex Albon, Liam Lawson, Yuki Tsunoda, Franco Colapinto, and Zhou Guanyu were the 10 other drivers who were put under investigation during sprint qualifying.

An official statement from the FIA has now confirmed that there will be no further action against the drivers.

It stated: "The stewards determined that the drivers took appropriate actions to not impede other drivers, and where required slowed down significantly to allow other drivers to pass while giving those drivers a clear track.

"The stewards therefore determine that the drivers concerned did not drive “unnecessarily slowly”, and that evidently the reason they were above the maximum time was due to their appropriate actions and take no further action."