Sergio Perez will serve a three-place grid drop at the next F1 race for driving his Red Bull in an unsafe condition to avoid a Safety Car during the Canadian Grand Prix.
The Mexican crashed on Lap 51 of Sunday’s wet and wild race in Montreal and crawled back to the pits to retire with his rear wing hanging off his car.
Perez was investigated for the incident and it was deemed he “failed to leave the track with serious mechanical difficulties after significantly damaging the rear wing”, in breach of Article 26.10 of the FIA’s F1 Sporting Regulations.
As such, Perez has been handed a three-place grid penalty for the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona later this month.
Red Bull also admitted to the stewards that they were trying to avoid a Safety Car, with Perez’s teammate Max Verstappen leading the race at the time. The team have been fined €25,000.
“The Stewards heard from the driver of Car 11 (Sergio Perez), team representative and reviewed video, team radio and in-car video evidence,” the stewards explained.
“After making contact with the barriers in Turn 6, the driver continued on track for the remainder of the lap with a significantly damaged car and thereby lost several carbon fibre parts on the way back to the pits. The team confirmed in the hearing that the driver had been advised to bring the car back to the pits as they were trying to avoid a Safety Car situation.
“The Stewards determine that, as well as a financial penalty for the team, a sporting penalty is necessary due to the safety implications of the incident. The penalty is imposed in line with precedents.”