A pre-race rules breach for which Red Bull were fined at the United States Grand Prix involved a team member attempting to remove tape guiding McLaren driver Lando Norris to his grid position.
Red Bull were fined 50,000 euros by the FIA after the stewards found that a member of the team had “re-entered the gate well area at Gate 1 in proximity of the second grid position,” which belonged to Norris on Sunday at the Circuit of The Americas, after the cars had pulled away for the formation lap.
Red Bull’s Max Verstappen won the race from pole position, following his Sprint victory on Saturday, to complete a dream weekend in which the Dutchman gained 23 points on world championship leader Oscar Piastri to close to within 40 points of the McLaren driver with five rounds remaining.
Norris lost a place to Charles Leclerc at the first corner but passed the Ferrari driver with five laps remaining to ensure he finished in the same position he started, and moved to within 14 points of Piastri in what is a shaping up to be a thrilling three-way battle for the title.
The stewards’ official decision explained that the fine was issued because “hindering the safety measures to prepare the track for the race after the grid has been cleared is absolutely prohibited,” but did not explain why the individual was trying to access the restricted area.
Sky Sports News understands that the Red Bull staff member was trying to remove tape stuck on the grid wall by McLaren, designed to allow Norris to achieve an optimal position in his grid slot amid limited visibility from the cockpit.
Red Bull said the staff member in breach of the rules wasn’t aware of attempts from the pit marshals to stop him entering the area, but the stewards handed down the significant financial punishment on the grounds that any team member “should be aware” such actions are prohibited.
Red Bull are understood to have employed the tactic in the past, but have not previously been penalised for such a breach.
Half of the fine is suspended for the rest of the 2025 season on the grounds that Red Bull don’t commit the same offence again during the remainder of the campaign.
McLaren use tape on the grid wall to help guide Norris to his grid slot
Speaking before the full circumstances behind the incident had first been reported by The Race, and before the stewards had issues their verdict, Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies described the situation as a “misunderstanding”.
Mekies said: “We went to see the video with the FIA. Sure, it’s something we can do better in the future, but certainly on our side we do not feel that we have ignored any instructions and we did not get any specific instructions.
“So I think it’s very small things, but nonetheless something we will address in the future.”
Red Bull and McLaren have not yet responded to request from Sky Sports News for comment on the incident following the stewards’ verdict.
The stewards’ ruling in full
The Stewards heard from the team representative, reviewed a report from relevant officials and reviewed video evidence.
A team member re-entered the gate well area at Gate 1 in proximity of the second grid position after the formation lap had commenced and at the moment the pit marshals started to close the gate.
According to the report from the pit marshals the team member did not appear to react to their efforts to prevent him from entering the gate well area.
Red Bull staff members celebrate Verstappen’s United States GP victory as the Dutchman takes the chequered flag
The team representative stated during the hearing that the team member informed him that he was not aware of the efforts of the marshals to stop him.
However, the Stewards determine that any person affiliated to a team or other stakeholders should be aware that entering the track or hindering the safety measures to prepare the track for the race after the grid has been cleared is absolutely prohibited.
Thus, irrespective of whether or not the instructions of the relevant officials have been realised by the person concerned, hindering or delaying the process of closing the gates before the race start must be considered as an unsafe act and therefore a significant penalty to the team is warranted.
In order to prevent any reoccurrence, a portion of the financial penalty is suspended.
Formula 1’s thrilling title race heads continues at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez for the Mexico City Grand Prix this weekend, live on Sky Sports F1. Stream Sky Sports with NOW – no contract, cancel anytime
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: skynews.com
