24/05/2025 14:58
Franco Colapinto has avoided being handed a penalty by F1 stewards
for an infringement under the red flags for Lewis Hamilton's
practice crash. Hamilton crashed at Massanet in the closing
minutes of FP3, after cresting the hill to find the slow Esteban
Ocon and Kimi Antonelli in front of him. He tank-slapped into the
wall on the right-hand side, causing some damage, but Ferrari
should be able to repair the car for qualifying. Colapinto was
noted for a red-flag infringement under the reds, but the Argentine
has avoided a sanction. The stewards found that Colapinto was
approaching the Nouvelle chicane when he passed Lance Stroll's
Aston Martin under the red flags. When the reds were flown, the
light panel on a marshals post showed a blue flag, but as soon as
it switched to red, Colapinto braked hard to avoid overtaking the
Canadian. At the moment the red panel was shown, Colapinto was
only 30m from Stroll, who was on a slow lap, thus creating a
"considerable speed delta" between the cars. Whilst the stewards
accepted Colapinto had overtaken Stroll under a red flag, it was
due to the closeness of the two cars, with Colapinto's actions to
immediately slow down deemed reasonable. As such, he was not
summoned and no further action will be taken.
