No action against the Monaco result: this is how Mercedes explains its U-turn

As soon as the chequered flag fell at Monaco, the row began. This was because, in the famous race on the streets of the Principality, an unusually high number of penalties were handed out for exceeding the speed limit in the pit lane. No fewer than six drivers were reported for speeding, with Pierre Gasly caught twice, whilst Lewis Hamilton, George Russell, Franco Colapinto and Oscar Piastri were each booked and penalised once.

Gasly was the only one who did not serve his penalties, and he was also the only one to be caught travelling at more than 60.1 km/h on one occasion – the second offence was recorded at 60.4 km/h. The Alpine team exercised its right to a review, and the subsequent investigation revealed that the team, backed by French car manufacturer Renault, was able to prove that Gasly had never been driving too fast. The stewards admitted to a measurement error and rescinded Gasly’s two 5-second time penalties, allowing the Frenchman to move back up to third place.

This did not go down well with the competition. Red Bull Racing appealed against the ruling because Isack Hadjar lost his third place as a result of the decision to overturn Gasly’s penalties. And McLaren were annoyed about Piastri’s penalty, which he had already served and which could therefore hardly be rescinded.

Mercedes also submitted a request within the deadline for a review of the new Monaco results, as George Russell was not only among those penalised, but the Briton also lost vital points because the penalty had not been served in accordance with the regulations, for which he was handed an additional drive-through penalty. Nevertheless, Mercedes withdrew the request, as the FIA announced on Friday evening.

Toto Wolff’s team has confirmed the withdrawal and also provided a reason for it. “We can confirm that we have withdrawn our request for a review regarding the penalties imposed on George Russell during the Monaco Grand Prix. Following the decision to overturn the time penalty against Pierre Gasly, it was important for us to explore all available options to take into account the impact of George’s penalty for exceeding the speed limit in the pit lane on his race result,” explained the Brackley and Brixworth-based team in a statement.

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The statement continues: “We had only a limited window of opportunity during the race weekend in Barcelona to exercise our right to review, and we made use of it to secure our position on this matter. Our subsequent joint discussions with the FIA and Formula 1 have shown that they are determined to review the specific circumstances of the Monaco Grand Prix and to proactively address the factors that led to it. In view of this clear determination, we have concluded that pursuing our request for a review any further would serve neither our team nor the sport, and have therefore withdrawn our request.”

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff had justified the request by expressing a desire to have a seat at the table when decisions are made. It was a matter of principle to seek clarity on how penalties should be dealt with during the race, the Viennese emphasised after the recent race in Barcelona.