Why George Russell escaped F1 grid penalty for yellow flag offence in Baku

The FIA have confirmed George Russell will only receive a reprimand after he was placed under investigation for allegedly failing to slow down sufficiently under yellow flags.

Russell impressed once again on Saturday, securing fourth on the grid for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

The British driver’s latest qualifying triumph over Lewis Hamilton means he’s won the head-to-head for the year.

Russell’s P4 was in doubt after the FIA announced they were looking into a potential yellow flag offence.

Drivers are usually required to slow down when they see yellow flags - and most do so sufficiently.

However, Russell has escaped a grid penalty - only picking up a reprimand.

The stewards decided on this after they felt there was no “reasonable way” for Russell to have seen the yellow flag and that he acted appropriately due to where he was on the track.

The stewards also made reference to a previous example involving Charles Leclerc in FP3.

The FIA released the following explanation: “This was a very similar case to the decision of this panel of Stewards regarding Charles Leclerc with some important differences.

“Sainz ran into the runoff at Turn 2. Russell was the next car on track and was fully committed to his braking, and unlike Leclerc, was already turning into the corner, when the yellow flag was displayed on the far right of the runoff. The Stewards consider that there was no reasonable way for Russell to have seen that flag and even if he had, he could not have changed his braking.

“Once he rounded the corner, Russell accelerated normally. Unlike Leclerc, however, the illuminated green light panel between turn 2 and turn 3, was a significant distance further down the track and harder to see at the point of acceleration than in the case of Leclerc. But, ultimately, Russell did see the green.

“Russell also did not get the benefit of the DRS in that zone because it was automatically switched off, slowing his lap. The Stewards pointed out in the Leclerc decision many mitigating factors. In this case, the Stewards believe there is further mitigation.

“However, it is a matter of safety that the drivers understand that when they have seen a car in a runoff, and green light indicates that they are inside of a yellow sector and that some indication, such as a lift or at least limited acceleration, acknowledging that other issues can occur within a yellow zone.

“Thus, in this limited set of circumstances, in particular that the yellow flag could not have been seen, the Stewards order a Driving Reprimand rather than a more serious penalty.”