Lance Stroll will take a three-place grid penalty for next weekend’s Mexican Grand Prix after the US Grand Prix stewards found him to blame for his race-ending crash with Fernando Alonso.
The Aston Martin and Alpine collided along the back straight while battling over seventh place on lap 22 following the first Safety Car restart.
Alonso followed in the slipstream of the Aston Martin then pulled to the left to attempt to pass. Stroll moved to the left in an apparent defensive move. Alonso collided with the rear of the Aston Martin, lifting the Alpine’s front wheels off the ground and sending him towards the barrier.
Stroll’s car was sent spinning littering the straight with debris as cars behind tried to avoid the crash. Alonso’s Alpine struck a glancing blow against the barriers but was able to continue with relatively minor damage. Stroll’s car was too damaged to continue and he retired from the race.
The stewards announced they would investigate the frightening incident after the race had finished. Following their investigation, and having spoken to both drivers, the stewards handed Stroll a three-place grid penalty for the next race in Mexico after deeming him to have been “predominately to blame” for the clash.
“It was clear to us that the driver of car 18 [Stroll] made a late move in reacting to the overtaking attempt by the driver of car 14 [Alonso] by moving to the left,” the stewards explained in their decision. “The stewards determine that the driver of car 18 was predominantly to blame.”
As well as the grid penalty, Stroll has also been penalised with two penalty points on his superlicence. Stroll now has a total of five penalty points for the last 12 month period, leaving him seven points shy of an automatic one-race suspension.
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