Russell gets two-place Brazilian GP grid drop for F1 qualifying incident

Exiting the pitlane in Q1, ahead of the first flying laps of the session, Russell slowly rolled down the pit exit on the inside of the Senna Esses to create a gap to the cars in front.

Because of the narrow nature of the pit exit Russell impeded Alpine driver Gasly, who complained over the team radio about the Briton's antics.

The FIA had actually included a provision for this weekend that allowed drivers to create a gap coming out of the pits after drivers started blocking the pits last week in Mexico, but only on the condition that they stuck to the left and allowed space for cars behind to pass.

But the FIA stewards felt that Russell hadn't done so and had thereby impeded the Frenchman, and slapped him with a two-place grid penalty.

"In order to avoid situations like the ones that occurred in Mexico, the Race Director’s Event Notes for this event contained a specific clause (item 14) stipulating that it was permitted to go slow in the pit exit to create a gap before crossing the SC2 line," said the verdict.

"However, by doing so, a driver must stay as far to the left as possible to allow other drivers to pass on the right side.

"RUS was exiting the pits, preparing for an out-lap. RUS went slow to create a gap for a clear lap, but did not manage to stay completely to the left.

Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images

George Russell, Mercedes F1 W14, Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB19, in the pit lane

"As a result, following car(s) were not able to overtake, as intended by the Race Director’s instructions. This clearly violates the wording and the spirit of item 14 of the Race Director’s Event Notes."

Meanwhile, Russell's penalty from sixth to eighth, after a chaotic Q3 qualifying segment in which most of the 10 contenders felt they had a chance to qualify on the front row.

At the start of Q3 Russell was well positioned in the pitlane in fourth as the onset of heavy rain and strong winds put drivers under pressure to nail their first flying lap.

But because of a too conservative out-lap, Russell's tyres and those of team-mate Lewis Hamilton weren't in the right window for what turned out to be the only flyer.

Red Bull's Max Verstappen took pole ahead of Ferrari's Charles Leclerc, while Aston Martin duo Lance Stroll and Fernando Alonso kept the Mercedes pair off the second row.

McLaren's Lando Norris and the second Ferrari of Carlos Sainz are the two benefactors of Russell's grip drop, moving up to sixth and seventh respectively.

Revised 2023 F1 Brazilian GP starting grid