How many penalty points have all 20 F1 drivers got – and when will they expire?
Alonso received 3 penalty points, Magnussen 2 and Ricciardo 1 point during the weekend.
What are Penalty points?
Formula 1 drivers accumulate penalty points for various misdemeanors during a race weekend. The more severe the infraction, the more penalty points a driver will receive. One of the most common offense is speeding in the pit lane, but other offenses can include crossing the white line at the end of the pit lane, driving unnecessarily slowly on track, and causing a collision. Points are added to a driver's total after each race, and if they reach 12 points they are automatically banned from participating in the next race.
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1. Yuki Tsunoda - 7 points
Yuki received 1 penalty point for impending Valterri Bottas during Qualification of Styrian GP which is set to expire in 47 days. He was also penalized twice during the Austrian GP when he didn’t respect the track limits by crossing the white line at pit entry. And 4 more for causing collisions with Stroll at São Paulo GP, Vettel at Saudi GP.
2. Lance Stroll - 7 points
Lance was penalized 3 times for causing a collisions, each time with 2 points at Hungarian GP, Russian GP and recent Australian GP. 1 more penalty point for weaving on the straights impending closely chasing Bottas, who took evasive action to avoid collision. This brings his total number of penalty points to 7.
3. Max Verstappen - 7 points
There is no doubt that 2021 World Champion is a very aggressive driver. This can often lead to collisions with other drivers, as we saw at the Italian GP and the Saudi GP. He received 2 penalty points for his collision with 7 time champion Sir Lewis Hamilton at the Turn 1/2 Italian GP. 2 more for failing to respecting yellow flags at Qatar GP qualification round. During the Saudi GP, we saw him braking early to gain a potential DRS advantage resulting in a minor collision with Lewis again for which he received 2 penalty points, and one more for leaving the track and gaining lasting advantage.
Detailed full list is available here:
One thing is for certain, this year the stewards are strict and applying the rules correctly. If you cause a collision you receive 2 penalty points. This may seem harsh, but it is necessary to ensure that all drivers are held accountable for their actions on track.
Last year there were several incidents where drivers collided with each other without receiving any penalties. This caused a lot of confusion and made it difficult to determine who was at fault in each incident. By enforcing the rules strictly, we can avoid these situations and make sure that everyone is playing by the same set of rules.