Mercedes explains why it won’t challenge Russell’s Monaco GP penalties

The FIA announced on Thursday that Mercedes had withdrawn its request to review the Formula 1 Monaco Grand Prix results, with the team confirming the decision on Friday morning.

In its statement, Mercedes explained that, following discussions with the FIA and Formula One Management, it had concluded that pursuing the request would not achieve any positive outcome for either the team or the series.

Mercedes only requested a review of the Monaco GP results following the reinstatement of Pierre Gasly’s third place. That came after Alpine challenged the race results immediately after the finish and successfully proved that the two penalties Gasly received in Monaco for pitlane speeding were incorrect. The crucial element that led to that outcome was an admission from FOM, the official timing systems supplier of the championship, that the measurements used in Monaco were incorrect.

That sparked further controversy, as four other drivers were penalised during the race for the same offence, including Mercedes’ George Russell. What made it harder for Mercedes to challenge the results was the fact that the Briton received another penalty– a drive-through – while attempting to serve the initial one, and ended up outside the top 10 as a result.

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff admitted he saw very little chance of getting Russell’s result overturned, but the team still requested another review from the FIA. It was then announced that the hearing was scheduled for Saturday 20 June, only for Mercedes to withdraw its bid.

“We can confirm that we have withdrawn our Right of Review submission relating to the penalties received and served by George Russell during the Monaco Grand Prix,” the team’s Friday morning statement said.

“Following the decision to rescind Pierre Gasly’s time penalty, it was important for us to explore all available options to address the impact of George’s pitlane speeding penalty on his race result.

“We had a limited time window in which to apply for the Right of Review during the race weekend in Barcelona, and did so in order to reserve our position in this regard.”

Autosport understands that, following conversations with the FIA and Formula One Management, Mercedes came to the conclusion that cancelling Russell’s drive-through penalty – or receiving any form of sporting compensation for it – was not possible, and therefore there was almost no opportunity for the team to achieve any substantial gain for its driver.

“Our subsequent collaborative discussion with FIA and Formula One has shown their determination to review the unique circumstances arising from the Monaco Grand Prix and to proactively address the factors that caused them,” the Mercedes statement read.

“In the face of this clear determination, we have concluded that further pursuit of our Right of Review application will not serve our team or the sport and thus we have withdrawn our submission.”

Still, the controversy surrounding the Monaco GP results is not over, as Red Bull and McLaren have protested the results. That will now be dealt with by the FIA’s International Court of Appeal.

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– The Autosport.com Team