Mercedes seeks right of review over Russell’s Monaco GP penalty

Although the Barcelona Grand Prix has already been completed, the result of the Monaco race is still being contested in the Formula 1 paddock. Pierre Gasly’s pair of penalties for speeding in the pitlane has been overturned, but not all teams are happy with that outcome.

McLaren and Red Bull lodged an intention to appeal with the FIA, effectively buying themselves 96 hours to decide whether they actually want to proceed with a formal appeal – something Red Bull said has not been decided yet.

At the same time, Mercedes has initiated a right of review procedure regarding George Russell’s result in Monaco. The Mercedes driver was also handed a five-second penalty for speeding in the pitlane, but Toto Wolff’s team argues that the Gasly case provides new and significant evidence.

That is the first requirement for a right of review procedure, which is always a two-step process. First, the stewards must determine whether the additional evidence is genuinely new, significant and relevant. Only then can the stewards of the respective race reopen the case and review it.

In Alpine’s case, the French team was successful on both counts, largely because official timekeeper Formula One Management acknowledged that the measurements in Monaco were not accurate. The stewards’ verdict confirmed that drivers could legally drive a shorter distance in the Monaco pitlane than officials had used in their calculations.

Those two factors prompted Mercedes to request a right of review for Russell’s case. Wolff’s team argues that both the admission that the measurements were incorrect and the fact that Gasly’s penalty was overturned constitute new evidence that was not available at the time of the race – and therefore at the time Russell was penalised.

“On the Gasly thing, yes, we've asked for a right of review because we just simply want to sit on the table when decisions are being made,” Wolff said on Sunday night.

Toto Wolff says Mercedes asked for a right of review over the penalty

Photo by: Kym Illman / Getty Images

When asked by Autosport, Mercedes confirmed on Monday morning that the process has indeed been initiated, which the FIA has also confirmed.

At the time of writing, however, no official FIA document has been issued yet, as several documents still need to be submitted by the team before the case can formally begin.

Article 14.4.1 of the FIA International Sporting Code states that a right of review request must be submitted within 96 hours “after the end of the competition concerned or 96 hours from when the decision of the out-of-competition stewards panel is published.”

Mercedes’ request seems to fall outside the 96-hour window following the end of the Monaco GP, but within that timeframe following the Gasly verdict and publication of the amended race result. In addition, a team may request a 24-hour extension to submit a right of review request.

Wolff did acknowledge in Barcelona that Mercedes’ chances of success appear slim. The main reason is that Russell, unlike Gasly, already served one of the penalties imposed on him – in his case the drive-through penalty.

Alpine was able to simply have Gasly’s total of 10s penalty removed from his race time, but Russell’s situation is more complicated because he did not serve the original five-second penalty and instead received a drive-through penalty which he did serve.

With the right of review, Mercedes at least hopes to secure “a seat at the table”, as Wolff described it, while also seeking further clarification from the stewards on the matter.