FIA announces verdict on Stroll investigation

Aston Martin was reprimanded after Lance Stroll stayed away from its fan engagement activity, which was investigated after the first practice session.

During an investigation by race control, Aston Martin was made aware that Stroll had failed to meet his media obligations on Friday because he had a medical appointment.

The race stewards were informed that Stroll had been suffering from a health problem since the morning and that the media representatives had been informed of the Canadian’s condition as soon as possible.

The race director’s report states that while they have “sympathy” for the Aston Martin driver, Aston Martin should have applied to the chief medical officer or medical delegate for a medical exemption for Stroll.

The full report from Race Direction states: “Race Direction has received a report from the media representative that the driver of Car 18 (Lance Stroll) did not participate in the fan engagement activity on Friday.”

“The race management heard the team representative and the driver and found that the driver was indeed not present at the fan event. The driver stated that he had an appointment with his doctor at the time of the fan event because some health problems had arisen that morning.

“This was confirmed by the team. The team representative explained that they had informed the media delegate as soon as possible, but the timetable for doing so was very tight.

“The Race Direction understands that in the event of a health problem, the Driver should seek immediate medical attention. However, it also points out that in such a case, the proper procedure is to contact the Chief Medical Officer and/or the Medical Delegate and request a medical exemption to participate in the fan activity, as required by Article 19.2 c) of the FIA ​​Formula 1 Sporting Regulations.

“Taking into account the circumstances, the Stewards conclude that a reprimand is appropriate to the team for not following the proper procedure for requesting a medical exemption.”