Formula 1

No Further Action Taken: Gasly and Ocon Collision Deemed Racing Incident at Australian GP

Published

2 months ago

02/04/2023

No Further Action Take Gasly and Ocon Collision Deemed Racing Incident at Australian GP 2023

Gasly and Ocon’s collision at the Australian Grand Prix led to their elimination, affecting Alpine’s performance and putting Gasly’s race ban at risk. However, the stewards have deemed it a racing incident, resulting in no further action.

The stewards overseeing the Australian Grand Prix have concluded that the collision between Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon, both Alpine Formula 1 drivers, during the first lap of the race was simply a result of racing and therefore does not warrant any additional disciplinary action.

Later on in the race, when the event was restarted with only two laps remaining, Gasly lost control of his vehicle and veered onto the grass before returning to the track at Turn 2 and colliding with Ocon while moving towards the right side of the track.

Unfortunately, the collision between Gasly and Ocon had significant consequences as both drivers were forced out of the race.

This incident also had a negative impact on Alpine’s overall performance, causing them to miss out on a potentially successful double points finish. Furthermore, Gasly’s penalty points tally currently stands at 10, which is dangerously close to the 12-point limit that would result in an automatic race suspension.

Gasly will not have an opportunity to reduce his penalty points until after the Emilia Romagna GP, which is scheduled to take place in mid-May.

Initially, the investigation of the incident involving Gasly and Ocon raised the possibility of Gasly being issued a penalty point that would put him at risk of a race ban or bring him closer to that limit.

However, the stewards ultimately classified the incident as a standard racing occurrence that frequently takes place during the first lap of a race. They stated that both drivers acknowledged and acknowledged this, and thus there was no need for any additional penalties or disciplinary action.

Gasly declined to comment on the incident between him and Ocon following the race. He simply stated that he did not have anything to say about the race’s conclusion, including the red flag and restart. Gasly expressed his extreme disappointment and frustration, which prevented him from providing any additional commentary, as he watched his fellow competitors complete the race.

Esteban Ocon, who was also involved in the incident, shared that Gasly had taken responsibility for the collision and apologized to him following the race. Ocon noted that the race’s restart was quite chaotic, and the accident could have happened with any of the other cars on the track.

Ocon further explained that the race’s restart created a challenging situation for all drivers on the track, with several cars returning to the tarmac after driving on the grass.

He acknowledged that the incident involving him and Gasly was a result of the difficult circumstances that arise when trying to maneuver with cold or colder tyres. Ocon stated that he held no ill will towards Gasly, and the latter had already apologized to him for the collision.

Alpine team principal, Otmar Szafnauer, also labelled the incident as a typical racing occurrence and asserted that both drivers had apologized to each other after the race. According to him, each driver played a part in the collision, and it was not a case of a single driver being solely responsible. However, Szafnauer did not elaborate on the exact roles played by each driver in the incident.

Szafnauer speculated that Gasly might have avoided the incident if he had stayed on the racing line instead of going wide at Turn 1, as several other drivers did as well.

Meanwhile, Ocon, who was following Yuki Tsunoda, stayed on the racing line, and Gasly might not have seen him when he attempted to return to the track. As a result, the two Alpine drivers collided, causing both of them to retire from the race.

F1 2023 No Further Action Taken: Gasly and Ocon Collision Deemed Racing Incident at Australian GP F1 2023 No Further Action Taken: Gasly and Ocon Collision Deemed Racing Incident at Australian GP F1 2023 No Further Action Taken: Gasly and Ocon Collision Deemed Racing Incident at Australian GP