No penalty for Magnussen after pit light investigation

2016 Monaco Grand Prix

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The stewards have confirmed that no further action will be taken against Kevin Magnussen after he was investigated for exiting the pit lane under a red light in qualifying.

Magnussen was placed under investigation after he crossed the pit exit line despite the lights being on red at the moment he crossed the line following Max Verstappen’s crash in Q1.

Despite TV replays confirming the infringement, the stewards have decided to take no action against the Renault driver having determined that Magnussen’s dashboard warning system only went red half a second before he exited the pit lane.

The full decision by the FIA stewards is as follows:

Although the green light was extinguished and replaced by the red light two seconds before the driver crossed the pit exit line, the team presented evidence that the dashboard light only turned to red 0.55 seconds prior to the car crossing the line.

Further, the driver explained that he looked at the trackside light on approach, it was green, then he focussed on the track ahead because there is a turn from the the pit exit. By the time his dashboard light came on it was too late to avoid crossing the line. The team also radioed “red flag, red flag”, but the car had passed the line.

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Will Wood
Will has been a RaceFans contributor since 2012 during which time he has covered F1 test sessions, launch events and interviewed drivers. He mainly...

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16 comments on “No penalty for Magnussen after pit light investigation”

  1. The correct decision, happy to hear that

    1. Whilst I agree I am uneasy about the inconsistent approach to applying the rules.
      Inconsistency leads to favouritism, which leads to accusations of wrongdoing / corruption.
      This should set a precedent where if this similar circumstance happens elsewhere the same judgement applies, but we all know that won’t be the case.

  2. What a relief! It would have been unbearable if KMag once should have felt the wrath of the Stewards.

  3. I am uneasy about this decision. I grant that the light-crossing was 100% accidental and that Kevin was trying to follow the rules. However, a red light is a red light and it is especially important for people to be looking at the track rather than the dashboard or anything else in the pit lane, as it has particular dangers. It could easily have ended with a Petit Le Mans 2014/Canada 2008-style pile-up had someone behind not anticipated such behaviour. The dashboard light system is meant to supplement the trackside lighting, not replace it.

    1. How can a pile up a la montreal 2008 happen if the first driver doesnt stop?? Surely it requires someone to stop (kimi that time) and someone not to (lewis & someone else i cant quite remember who).

    2. I agree, I have a lot of comprehension for the stewards decision on Kvyat but this one makes me feel uneasy. He could have stopped (maybe by coming to a stop after the light, but that would have shown he was trying to follow the rules) but he didn’t. He decided to complete the lap anyway.

    3. Yeah, I put no blame on Kevin, it happens as they say, but I feel like, this, along with speeding in the pit lane needs to be, a rule that allow no excuses.

    4. Justin (@vivagilles27)
      29th May 2016, 5:32

      I agree with the stewards. The result of his lap was of no danger. Surely he putted around in all manor of safety seeing as there were red flags and red lights flashing everywhere. The only negative is that the world is a few liters of fuel lighter….

  4. Most sober young men can react in under 0.3s and racing drivers can usually react far more quickly. Magnussen had 0.55s so he ought to have reacted in time. If any driver took 0.55s to react to the start lights going out he could expect a hit from the rear.

    That said, the stewards this weekend seem to take the view ‘no gain – no foul’ with Kvyat and Magnussen let off when they did not benefit from their misdemeanors, which makes for a better event overall.

    1. That leaves 0,25 seconds to stop the car. F1 cars have good brakes, but not that good.

    2. pastaman (@)
      29th May 2016, 12:45

      You are assuming that he is watching the light at the exact moment it turns red.

  5. Anyone can jump a red light I’m happy to see some leniency, even if 0.5 sec is not that little time.

  6. Tell that to Mika Hakkinen at USGP 2001, he won still..

  7. Driving a Renault is penalty enough.

  8. There is a precedent to the leniancy of the stewards in this case and kvyats floor test – this year Hamilton reversed in the pits, and last race he crashed his teammate out of the race and no penalties were given. This year they are being leniant.

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