Pierre Gasly will officially appear on the podium of the Monaco Grand Prix. In the lead-up to the first free practice for the Barcelona Grand Prix, the International Automobile Federation (FIA) accepted on Friday the appeal filed by Alpine, annulled the two penalties imposed on the French driver for alleged speeding in the pit lane, and restored the third place he had achieved on track.
The decision came after the French team requested a Right of Review following the race held last weekend. Gasly had crossed the finish line in third position, but two five-second penalties dropped him to seventh place in the final classification.
During the hearing held this week, a key element emerged that changed the situation. The Formula One Management (FOM), responsible for the timing system in Formula 1, acknowledged that there was a measurement error used to calculate the average speeds within the Monaco pit lane.
The investigation determined that the reference distance taken in one of the control sectors was incorrect. Due to a modification in the location of the pit entry barriers, the measured section turned out to be 77 centimeters shorter than recorded by the system. That difference caused the calculated speeds to appear higher than the actual ones, leading to erroneous penalties.
Alpine had maintained from the very beginning that Gasly had not exceeded the 60 km/h limit and presented data supporting their position. Ultimately, the stewards agreed with that interpretation and concluded that the driver never violated the regulations.
"We welcome the FIA's decision to accept our Right of Review following the final classification of the Monaco Grand Prix last weekend. As a result, the stewards have revoked the two five-second penalties imposed on car No. 10, restoring the team's final third place", Alpine stated in a press release.
The resolution also changed the final result of the race. Isack Hadjar (Red Bull), who had inherited the last podium spot after the penalties on the Frenchman, dropped to fourth place. Additionally, Óscar Piastri (McLaren), Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls), and Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) also fell one position.
However, other drivers affected by the same error did not share the same fate. Among them were Lewis Hamilton, George Russell, Oscar Piastri, and Franco Colapinto. Since their teams did not file review requests and some of the penalties had already been served during the race, the FIA explained that there is no regulatory mechanism to reverse those consequences once the race has concluded.
In addition to regaining the podium, Gasly and Alpine will earn the corresponding points for both the drivers' championship and the constructors' championship (+9 compared to the original result), in a resolution that rewrote the final outcome of one of the most emblematic races on the Formula 1 calendar.
Driver Standings after Monaco
1st - Andra Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) - 156 points
2nd - Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) - 90 points
3rd - George Russell (Mercedes) - 88 points
4th - Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) - 75 points
5th - Oscar Piastri (McLaren) - 58 points
6th - Lando Norris (McLaren) - 58 points
7th - Max Verstappen (Red Bull) - 43 points
8th - PIERRE GASLY (Alpine) - 35 points
9th - Isaac Hadjar (Red Bull) - 26 points
10th - Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) - 24 points
11th - Oliver Bearman (Haas) - 18 points
12th - FRANCO COLAPINTO (Alpine) - 15 points
