Singapore Grand Prix - race weekend →
Hülkenberg investigation, Singapore GP 2026no penalty for impeding Sainz
OutcomeNo penalty applied - impeding
← This resolved the original summons
Infringement · Published
- Driver
- Hülkenberg
- What happened
- Hülkenberg impeded Sainz in turn 5
- What this outcome means
- No penalty (NPA) explained →
- Offence
- Impeding - every ruling & the going rate →
Going rate across 18 rulings in 2026: Warning ×6 · +3 grid ×5 · No action ×4
- Regulation cited
- Art. B4.1.1
- Stewards' reasoning
- The Stewards heard from Hülkenberg (Nico Hulkenberg), Sainz (Carlos Sainz), team representatives and reviewed positioning/marshalling system data, video, team radio, timing and in-car video evidence. Video showed that Hülkenberg was driving slowly on the racing line on the approach to turn 5. Sainz arrived from behind on a push lap and had to abandon the lap. That Sainz was thereby impeded was not in dispute. The issue was whether Sainz had been ‘unnecessarily’ impeded. The team stated in the hearing that they believed, based on timing information to which they subscribed, sourced from the official timekeeping provider, that Sainz had already taken the chequered flag and conveyed that information to the driver by radio. Therefore Hülkenberg did not expect Sainz to still be on a push lap when it was closing in. The Stewards acknowledge the fact that the data referenced by the team led the team to reasonably believe that Sainz had received the chequered flag. Indeed, it was evident from Sainz’s radio messages that its team had formed the same belief relying on the same data. The misunderstanding was revealed to be attributable to the information initially received by the teams… full reasoning ↗
Source: FIA stewards' decision document (PDF, fia.com). The Time Penalty links to the official document and, where it can, summarises the outcome in a sentence; it does not host or alter the document.
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