Alpine Questions Recent Penalties in F1

Alpine is urging Formula 1 to reconsider certain penalties handed out recently.

Among those affected was Gasly, who, along with several other drivers like George Russell, Lewis Hamilton, Oscar Piastri, and teammate Franco Colapinto, received a five-second penalty for exceeding the pit lane speed limit. Russell later admitted to a software glitch after the race and even spoke with race officials during a late red flag regarding the issue.

“I don’t really get why I received a penalty since I was using the pit limiter before the line,” Russell remarked post-race. “We engaged it after the line, but clearly, there was a software issue that led to penalties for several drivers.”

Alpine shared a brief statement on social media expressing their desire to review the penalties.

Moreover, the team’s managing director, Steve Nielsen, released a video commending Gasly’s “great performance.”

Gasly himself expressed deep disappointment to the media, stating he was “heartbroken.”

“I’m really just at a loss for words. I don’t want to dwell on it right now,” Gasly said. “We all put in so much effort for this opportunity, and then there are aspects that warrant reassessment that just steal that moment away. The team had an effective speed limiter in place, and I made sure to control my speed well before the line.”

He added, “I crossed the line in third place in Monaco, right in front of all the fans, but ended up with a penalty and finished far down. It’s just hard to process.”

Gasly also mentioned that the penalty likely robbed him of what would have been his sixth podium finish.

“After ten years in this sport and five podiums, crossing the line in that position should be a huge celebration, but it stings when things like this happen,” he noted, sounding conflicted.

“I hope that Alpine feels we’ve done everything we can to support this appeal, and they will take action.”

Williams was the last team to successfully request a review, questioning a ten-second penalty given to Carlos Sainz Jr. for colliding with Liam Lawson at last season’s Dutch Grand Prix. Following a review, race stewards sided with Williams and rescinded the two penalty points initially imposed, although the ten-second penalty itself remained intact since it was enforced during the race.