Lewis Hamilton escaped Q2 drama to claim pole position for Formula 1’s Russian Grand Prix but faces a meeting with the stewards at the Sochi Autodrom.
Hamilton faced potential elimination after Sebastian Vettel’s Q2 accident and only narrowly began his hot lap after the session restarted.
Hamilton went on to claim top spot, setting a new track record, in front of Max Verstappen and Valtteri Bottas.
But he must meet the stewards over an alleged failure to follow the instructions issued by the Race Director concerning the Turn 2 run-off.
Hamilton twice transgressed during the session and had lap times deleted in both Q1 and Q2 for not staying within the track limit.
Article 22.1 of Michael Masi’s event notes, which are issued to teams ahead of the race weekend, also outlines what drivers should do at Sochi’s Turn 2 if they go wide.
Masi’s instructions dictate that “each time any car fails to negotiate Turn 2 by using the track, and who passes to the left of, or has any part of the car over the first orange kerb element prior to the apex, or to the left of the orange apex sausage at Turn 2, must then re-join the track by driving around the array of blocks as indicated by the arrows before the re-joining the track at Turn 3.”
Hamilton did this when he went wide on his Q2 out-lap, having run straight on at Turn 2, but did not do this on his first Q1 push lap when he only narrowly missed making the corner.
Haas drivers Kevin Magnussen and Romain Grosjean, along with Williams’ Nicholas Latifi, must also face the stewards for the same reason.
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