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Vettel handed reprimand and fined €25,000

21:25, 10 Nov 2018

byJake Williams-Smith

Sebastian Vettel will start the Brazilian Grand Prix from P2 on the grid after being handed a reprimand and fine for his actions during qualifying. In Q2, Vettel was called to the FIA weighbridge during the session. Vettel then broke the weighing equipment by driving off it in his eagerness to box for soft tyres.

Ferrari dummied Mercedes by going on initially on supersoft tyres before pitting and fitting the soft tyres, giving them the advantage of the more durable tyres in the race against their rivals.

Vettel, in his haste to get back into the pits and change tyres before the rain arrived at the Interlagos circuit, was pleading with FIA officials to speed the weighing process up before driving off of and in the process breaking the scales.

In a statement on the incident, the stewards acknowledged that the Ferrari driver did switch off his engine to be weighed however. Not doing so could have led to an incorrect reading being given and this might have saved him from a harsher punishment.

"The stewards observed that the driver did not stop the engine at the time he was directed by the official at the scales, knocked over the cone placed to stop the driver from driving onto the scales, which he then did. At the time he was being shown a sign to have his “Brakes On” by an official that was standing in front of the car, and while not hitting the official did force him out of the way while driving onto the scales. He then turned off the engine.

Once the weight was taken he then did not wait for the officials to push the car off the scales, and while the Stewards accept that he may have misunderstood the indication from the official, he then re-fired the car and drove off the scales, which is not the procedure because it can damage the scales, which in this case he did. While no one was hurt by the scales being thrown out from behind the car, and while the Stewards accept that the driver did not drive off the scales in a reckless manner, the procedure is established exactly to prevent damage to the scales or a potentially dangerous situation, which is exactly what was caused.

The stewards found that the driver failed to follow the instructions of the relevant officials for the safe and orderly conduct of the Event and order a Reprimand (Non-driving) and a fine of €25,000. Competitors are reminded that they have the right to appeal the decisions of the Stewards (with the exception of those referred to in Article 12.2.4 of the FIA International Sporting Code), in accordance with Article 15 of the FIA International Sporting Code and Article 9.1.1 of the FIA Judicial and Disciplinary Rules, within the applicable time limits."