Explained: What next in F1’s penalty saga and will the Monaco GP result change again?

Two weeks on from the Monaco Grand Prix and there is still no final result following a controversial penalty fiasco that has left Formula 1 under a cloud of uncertainty. 

The fallout from a penalty-laden race in Monte Carlo has intensified over the past week. Alpine’s success at overturning Pierre Gasly’s penalties and his subsequent reinstatement onto the podium has sparked a wave of appeals and protests. 

A highly unusual set of circumstances has created a confusing legal and regulatory nightmare that has left F1 seemingly no closer to reaching a conclusion. 

So what happens next, and what can we expect in the coming days?

What happened in Monaco? 

Mercedes’ Andrea Kimi Antonelli cruised to his fifth consecutive win ahead of Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton in Monaco, but there was drama behind after a late change of position regarding the final spot on the podium.

Gasly crossed the line third but the Alpine driver was later demoted to seventh after a pair of penalties for speeding in the pit lane were applied. This promoted Isack Hadjar into third, securing him a first podium as a Red Bull driver. 

Gasly was one of five drivers penalised for exceeding the 60km/h pit-lane speeding limit in Monaco during the race. The others were Hamilton, Mercedes’ George Russell, McLaren’s Oscar Piastri, and Gasly’s Alpine team-mate Franco Colapinto. 

Hamilton served his penalty during a safety car and lost no places as a result. Piastri also only suffered marginally. Gasly, however, lost a podium place, and Russell would be out of the points altogether after a Mercedes blunder meant he failed to serve the penalty correctly - resulting in an additional drive-through penalty. 

The abnormally high amount of pit lane speeding infringements raised eyebrows at the time. Suspicion was raised further after it emerged that all five drivers had only gone over the limit by 0.1km/h (Gasly went 0.4km/h over on one of his two offences). 

Shortly after the race, Alpine announced it had lodged a right of review request with the FIA. Alpine won the right to a review after a shocking error was revealed. 

Remarkably, Formula One Management, who are responsible for race timekeeping, admitted an error with the FIA ruling outlining a 77cm discrepancy in the pit lane measurement had caused the speed of the cars to be judged incorrectly. 

Why are F1 teams appealing? 

While Alpine were satisfied with the outcome of its appeal, having reclaimed a podium and the 15 points that come with it, others feel that an injustice has occurred. 

Mercedes asked the FIA for a right of review of the result of the Monaco Grand Prix over the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix, and will argue that Russell’s penalties should not have been issued in a hearing that will take place this Saturday.  

The Silver Arrows believe Russell, who dropped to 12th, could have scored a likely podium and want his points - which could turn out to be vital in the title race - reinstated. 

On Tuesday, it emerged that Red Bull and McLaren had also appealed, with the former looking to win back Hadjar’s podium and the three additional points it has now missed out on. 

Unlike Mercedes’ right of review request, McLaren and Red Bull have submitted an appeal with the FIA International Court of Appeal, which will see an independent panel review their cases in Paris. 

"While we fully respect the FIA's judicial processes and the role of the stewards, we believe this case raises important questions concerning sporting fairness, regulatory consistency and the integrity of competition,” McLaren said in a statement. 

"Throughout the Monaco Grand Prix weekend - and in every event - all teams operated according to the regulations and established standard practices for what concerns the speed limit in the pit lane as they were applied at the time. Competitors adjusted their procedures accordingly and, where required, accepted and served penalties imposed under those regulations.

"In our view, the subsequent removal of penalties creates a situation in which some competitors are disadvantaged by having acted in accordance with the rules and the Stewards' decisions. Such an outcome risks creating sporting inequity and undermining confidence in the consistent application of the FIA Sporting Regulations.

"Our decision to appeal is not directed at any competitor. Rather, it reflects our belief that the Championship benefits from regulations that are applied consistently, transparently and fairly to all participants.

"McLaren remains committed to working constructively with the FIA, Formula One and fellow competitors to protect the integrity of the sport and maintain confidence in its regulatory framework."

Could the Monaco GP result change - again?

F1 is now heading into very much uncharted waters and the simple answer is, we don’t know for certain. 

The decision to rescind the penalties for Gasly and restore his podium finish already represents an unprecedented move. So it cannot be said with total confidence that further changes to the result will not happen. 

However, there are some important factors to consider.

The first one is potentially crucial. There is currently no mechanism within the regulations that gives the stewards the power to ‘undo’ a penalty that was served in a race. 

"The stewards note that in relation to other cars that were penalised, some served their penalty and this regrettably, impacted their race strategies and therefore their race result,” the stewards said. 

"There will undoubtedly remain questions as to whether those breaches were genuine. There is no regulation that gives the stewards the power to 'undo' a served penalty. In any case, it is impossible to imagine how such power could be applied. Notably, no other party petitioned for a Right of Review within the allowable time frame."

It is widely thought that Mercedes’ case will fail on these grounds. If Mercedes cannot provide sufficient new evidence, the right of review will be rejected. 

The key differentiator between Gasly’s penalties and Russell’s is that the latter’s were served during the race, while Gasly’s time penalty was added after he took the chequered flag.

Even Mercedes doesn’t believe it is a case it’s ultimately likely to win, with team principal Toto Wolff conceding the Silver Arrow’s chances of success are a long shot. 

When will this all be sorted? 

An endgame timeline is hard to predict, but F1 will be keen for a resolution as soon as possible. 

Putting the Monaco penalty fiasco to bed ahead of the Austrian Grand Prix would be the ideal scenario for most, although the teams that feel aggrieved might argue otherwise. 

There is no specific timeline in place, though in the case of Mercedes’ petition for a right of review, it is expected a decision will come by the end of the weekend at the latest. 

A Mercedes representative must report to the stewards at 8am UK time on Saturday for a virtual conference. A second hearing will take place shortly afterwards if Mercedes has cleared the aforementioned new element threshold. 

Because McLaren and Red Bull are going through the FIA International Court of Appeal, this could take several weeks to review due to it being a bigger case and a longer process. 

No date has been formally set, though Crash.net understands McLaren and Red Bull have asked for their appeals to be expedited in a bid to resolve the matter soon rather than later. 

The last time an F1 team went down the FIA International Court of Appeal route was Alfa Romeo in 2019. The team challenged penalties for start infringements but its protest was deemed as being not admissible. 

This saga is an embarrassing one for F1, who would much rather the focus be on the on-track action amid what is bubbling up to be an intriguing title fight. 

Once this story has reached a natural conclusion, lessons will need to be learned to avoid a repeat in the future.