BREAKING: FIA Issues Final Verdict on Russell’s Bahrain Timing B…read more
FIA Clears George Russell of Penalty After DRS Breach in Bahrain GP
George Russell will retain his second-place finish at the Bahrain Grand Prix after the FIA decided not to penalize the Mercedes driver for a suspected DRS violation during the race.
Russell had been summoned by the stewards after it appeared he activated his DRS (Drag Reduction System) outside of the permitted zone and while not within one second of the car ahead — a breach that typically carries a five or ten-second time penalty.
However, after a thorough investigation, the FIA concluded that Russell did not gain a lasting advantage from the incident. Although he briefly gained 0.02 seconds while the DRS was active, he later lost 0.28 seconds by slowing down at the following corner, effectively neutralizing any benefit.
The review revealed that Russell’s DRS was manually triggered for just 37 meters on a 700-meter straight due to a mispress caused by ongoing technical issues. The driver was attempting to use the team radio but inadvertently activated the DRS via an auxiliary button that functions as both a backup radio and manual DRS control.
Further complicating matters, Mercedes had been instructed to use manual DRS activation due to earlier issues with an automatic system caused by a faulty timing loop. In addition, Russell was already contending with brake and electronics problems during the race.
Given the mitigating circumstances and the lack of competitive gain, the stewards ruled no penalty was necessary securing Russell’s podium finish and vital championship points in his chase of Max Verstappen.
