Lance Stroll will drop three places on the grid in next weekend’s Mexico City Grand Prix after the stewards at the Circuit of the Americas laid the blame on him for the mid-race collision with Fernando Alonso.
The Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant F1 Team driver was defending his position from the BWT Alpine F1 Team driver on the back straight of the Circuit of the Americas but appeared to leave his defensive move on the Spaniard too late, which resulted in contact between the two.
Alonso’s car briefly rode up on two wheels after hitting the left-rear wheel of Stroll’s Aston Martin, before brushing the barrier. He, amazingly, was able to return to the pits, have a new front wing and tyres fitted, and was able to resume his race.
Stroll, however, was out on the spot after being spun into the wall. His AMR22 suffered heavy damage and debris was littered across the track, meaning the second introduction of the day of the safety car.
Post-race discussions between the FIA, Aston Martin and Alpine, as well as visual evidence, highlighted that Stroll was ‘predominantly to blame’ for the accident, and as a result, he was handed a three-place grid penalty for the next event, which takes place in Mexico City next weekend.
“The Stewards heard from the driver of Car 18 (Lance Stroll), the driver of Car 14 (Fernando Alonso), and team representatives and have reviewed video evidence,” read the FIA statement.
“It was clear to us that the driver of Car 18 made a late move in reacting to the overtaking attempt by the driver of Car 14 by moving to the left. The stewards determine that the driver of Car 18 was predominantly to blame.”
Stroll was also handed two penalty points for the crash, bringing his total to five across the past twelve months.
