Bearman and Lawson penalised after São Paulo sprint incident for "dangerous driving"
- Maham Mir
- 1 hour ago
- 3 min read
Written by Maham Mir
An incident between Ollie Bearman and Liam Lawson which was referred to the stewards during the São Paulo sprint has resulted in both Bearman and Lawson being given a five second time penalties and one penalty point each on their license.
The incident itself, occurring between Turn 3 and Turn 4, saw the two drivers make contact after Bearman attempted to battle Gabriel Bortoleto. From the stewards’ perspective as outlined in their report, Bearman was guilty of “leaving insufficient room” which therefore pointed him to be the cause of the incident. Meanwhile, Lawson was guilty of "causing a collision".
For Bearman, the stewards noted that the “manoeuvre occurred at high speed and created an unnecessary risk.” In a sprint race which saw multiple retirements due to incidents caused by patches of standing water, it can be no surprise the stewards were looking for any potential examples of dangerous driving.
Discussing how Lawson was at fault for the incident, the stewards were clearer in their displeasure. In their records, the stewards noted: "onboard footage did not clearly establish whether the front axle of Car 30 was at least momentarily alongside the rear-view mirror of Car 87 prior to the apex, let alone whether this overlap was maintained at the apex."
Both Bearman and Lawson finished outside the points in P12 and P13 respectively. The Haas driver, more caught out as a result of the incident, spun on-track and found himself in P18 as a result. Shortly after, Lawson took to the radio to declare his frustration with the Briton's driving and the incident was noted soon after.
For Bearman, who is dangerously close to a race ban in his rookie season in Formula One, this decision from the stewards simply adds to the list of penalties he has had to face in his F1 career so far. On updated count, Bearman's total count brings him back up to nine penalty points which will remain for the next 12 months before expiring. Meanwhile, Lawson's count for penalty points rises to eight. As a reminder, 12 points ensures a race ban.
Inspite of the penalty, Bearman keeps his P12 finish and remains ahead of Lawson. In comparison, Lawson's penalty sees him drop to P16. Both of these decisions are crucial for the World Constructors' Championship which still has teams jostling for position despite McLaren having already sealed the title.
The stewards' records end with a clear declaration: "The Stewards determined that Car 30 (LAW) was predominantly to blame for the collision." This statement, especially when considering it follows the announcement of Bearman's penalty, certainly raises a few questions about some of the decisions made.
Within the wider conversation about the stewards and their decisions, it is important to note that the stewards' records released for Bearman declared that there was “consistency with comparable previous cases”.
Seven time world champion Lewis Hamilton is the latest driver to raise questions about the level of consistency regarding stewarding within F1 after being given a 10 second time penalty at the Mexico City Grand Prix last time out.
Both Bearman and Lawson will be hoping for a smoother race weekend following this incident and will have their first opportunity to turn things around with qualifying later on.
