Hankook Rome E-Prix: All Formula E penalties at a glance

At the penultimate Formula E event of the 2023 season, the race stewards of the FIA are again responsible for ensuring compliance with the Technical and Sporting Regulations. If any infringement of the rules is discovered, it is up to them to impose penalties. In this article you will find, as usual, a list of all the decisions of the stewards.

At the Hankook Rome E-Prix, Xavier Bone, Achim Loth and Alice Scutella are taking on this task. They will again be supported by ex-racing driver Paul Belmondo. After five years in Formula 3000, the 60-year-old Frenchman was also several years in Formula 1.

Penalties ahead of the Rome E-Prix

• Jean-Eric Vergne was fined 3,000 euros for "misconduct towards officials and the FIA" and placed on probation until the end of the season. This was triggered by a report from the FIA's media delegate, but it was received after the press conference in Portland and was therefore passed on to the race stewards in Rome. Vergne had commented negatively on social media ("This is completely wrong") on the race stewards' decision following the penalty against his team because of the use of an RFID scanner in the pit lane. Various media reports also featured other statements made by the Frenchman. In a hearing, Vergne explained that some of the words published in the press were not his. However, he agreed that some of the comments he had really said had not been respectful towards the stewards and also towards the FIA.

Penalties in Free Practice on Saturday

• Zane Maloney received a fine of 2,500 euros for undercutting the minimum tyre pressure on his Andretti car in rookie practice. Tyre supplier Hankook stipulates a minimum pressure of 1.20 bar in Rome for its all-weather tires, which once again feature colour accents.
• Jake Dennis received a warning for going 60 km/h during the full-course yellow period at the start of Free Practice 1. The allowed maximum in FCY conditions is 50 km/h.
• Mitch Evans received a fine of 2,500 euros because he was undercutting the minimum tyre pressure during the 1st Free Practice.
• Norman Nato's monocoque was changed after his accident in the 1st Free Practice. This is only permitted in the event of damage. However, with the technical possibilities on site it could not be determined beyond doubt whether the monocoque was damaged. Therefore, a penalty will depend on whether chassis manufacturer Spark's examination of the survivor cell reveals damage.
• Dan Ticktum was fined 1,000 euros for extracting too much energy from the battery on a 350 kW lap in 2nd free practice.

Penalties in qualifying on Saturday

• Jake Hughes' best lap time in qualifying was cancelled because the McLaren driver caused a red flag.
• As Jake Hughes also failed to set a lap time in the first six minutes as required, all the Briton's other lap times were also cancelled. He therefore has to start the race from the last grid position.

Penalties in and after the race on Saturday

• Pascal Wehrlein received a time penalty of five seconds for exceeding the speed limit during the red flag. He dropped from 7th to 9th place. Wehrlein stated at the hearing by the race stewards that as a result of the accident his car was damaged and the steering wheel was at an angle so that he could not activate the speed limiter. In addition, the angle at which the steering wheel was positioned and the vibrations made it impossible for him to see his current speed on the dashboard. The race stewards nevertheless handed out a penalty, and Wehrlein also received two penalty points on his racing licence.
• Maximilian Günther suffered damage to a rear tyre during the race, presumably when driving over debris from the mass crash. He was provided with a joker tyre for the remainder of the race weekend after the puncture was confirmed. Each driver has one joker each for front and rear tyres during the season should there be a puncture.
• Sergio Sette Camara also used his joker for a new rear tyre.
• Sam Bird, Sebastien Buemi, Antonio Felix da Costa, and Edoardo Mortara had their monocoque changed after the mass crash in the race. This is only allowed in case of damage. Here, too, a penalty was made dependent on whether chassis manufacturer Spark finds damage during the investigation, but this should be a mere formality in these cases.
• Jake Hughes had his monocoque changed after his crash during qualifying. Again, a penalty was made dependent on whether chassis manufacturer Spark finds damage during the investigation of the survival cell, but this should be a mere formality, too.

Penalties in Sunday's race

• Mitch Evans received a five-place penalty for the next race for causing a collision with Nick Cassidy. The Jaguar driver also received a penalty point on his licence.
• Antonio Felix da Costa received a five-second time penalty for causing a collision with Lucas di Grassi. He also received one penalty point.
• Antonio Felix da Costa received a reprimand for pushing Andre Lotterer off the track in turn 10.
• Nick Cassidy also received a five-second time penalty for causing a collision with Andre Lotterer. He got a penalty point, too.