Why Hamilton received no penalty after pit lane incident

It was briefly tight between Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso in the pit lane. The Briton had a slower pit stop and was let out just ahead of Alonso. Alonso and Aston Martin thought about a penalty, but it did not come. Read why the stewards did not hand out a penalty here.

After George Russell's crash, the safety car came out and the top three opted to go in for new tyres. There was no problem for Max Verstappen, but Hamilton's pit stop did not go to plan. Hamilton still came out ahead of Alonso, but the Spaniard appeared to need to brake.

The documents shared by the FIA state that images from inside and outside the cars were looked at, after which the conclusion was drawn that Alonso had to brake slightly. In the eyes of the stewards, this was not bad enough that Alonso really had to avoid his predecessor. The stewards therefore decided that there was not unsafe release.

Aston Martin would be allowed to challenge the lack of a penalty, but the chances of that happening are slim. Alonso passed Hamilton later on the track and there is no one behind Hamilton who would benefit from a likely five-second penalty. Lando Norris, like Hamilton, got away with an unsafe release. Alexander Albon also did not have to brake too much in the eyes of the stewards.