Bearman Slapped with Grid Penalty After Silverstone Mishap

Rookie F1 driver penalized for red flag violation during practice.

**Oliver Bearman** will face a setback at the British Grand Prix, incurring a 10-place grid penalty after failing to adhere to red flag regulations during the third free practice session, compounding the issue of his pitlane crash.

Key Infraction Details

**Bearman** lost control of his Haas while entering the pitlane during FP3, resulting in a collision with the wall. This incident coincided with a red flag period triggered by **Gabriel Bortoleto**’s accident at Maggotts and Becketts corners.

The impact caused significant damage to **Bearman**’s car, dislodging the nose and necessitating evasive maneuvers from other drivers. He expressed frustration over the radio, acknowledging his misjudgment in pushing the pit entry with cold brakes.

The FIA stewards’ report cited violations of F1 sporting regulations and the International Sporting Code, which mandate reduced speeds during red flag periods. **Bearman** was clocked entering the pitlane at 260km/h (160mph), surpassing his speed during normal in-lap conditions.

In addition to the grid penalty, **Bearman** received four penalty points, bringing his total to eight.

Stewards’ Justification

The stewards’ report detailed their findings after reviewing evidence, stating: “The race was red flagged at 12.33:57. Car 87 had slowed down for the red flag and as he was approaching Turn 15 accelerated significantly to race pace and entered the pit entry road at 260kph. He lost control of the car in the pit entry road and crashed into the barriers.”

According to the stewards, “It is beyond doubt that the driver of Car 87 did not proceed slowly back to the pit lane when he accelerated to simulate entering into the pit entry road under race conditions. In fact, we looked at a previous in-lap under normal racing conditions and found that he was faster in this lap, under a red flag.”

The report also noted, “To make matters worse, he lost control of the car and crashed into the barriers while at speed. The driver informed us that he misjudged the fact that his brakes were not warm because the lap was done slowly, due to the red flag. While this may have been a factor contributing to the crash, we did not consider it to be a mitigating factor.”

Prior Infraction

**Bearman** had previously accrued four penalty points for a similar red flag violation in Monaco, where he overtook **Carlos Sainz** during FP2.

Interestingly, a piece of debris from **Bearman**’s car had earlier triggered the FP3 red flag. A section of his VF-25 chassis broke off and landed on the track.

Notably, F1 drivers can be banned from racing if they accumulate 12 penalty points in a 12-month period, highlighting the importance of adhering to regulations (FIA.com).