Lewis Hamilton avoids penalty after qualifying

After qualifying a competitive 2nd for tomorrows European Grand Prix, Britain’s Lewis Hamilton was called up in front of the stewards after the McLaren driver allegedly held up the Mercedes of Nico Rosberg. However, much to the frustration of Rosberg the stewards have decided not to penalized Hamilton.

During the top ten qualifying shootout, Lewis Hamilton slowed down through the final complex of corners so as to build a gap between himself and the car in front. This trick is traditionally carried out by many drivers during qualifying, however Nico Rosberg was adamant that the 2008 World Champion impeded the German’s flying lap as Hamilton slowed in front of Maldonado which in turn back the Venezuelan driver into the oncoming Mercedes.

Prior to the European Grand Prix weekend, drivers had been warned not to drive unnecessarily slow throughout the final complex of corners. This was due mainly to the high-speed nature of these final few turns, as well as the poor visibility with the blind entries to these turns.

However, upon calling both drivers to see the stewards, it was decided no action was to be taken against the McLaren driver. The race stewards official statement read: “The Stewards, having heard from both drivers and the team representatives, examined the video, audio and GPS evidence and telemetry data, decide to take no further action.”

The reasons for this decision include the fact that Lewis Hamilton actually set a faster sector time than was previously set by Nico Rosberg, which was a clear indication that the Briton did not unnecessarily drive slowly through the final turns. It was also added that the smallest gap between the two cars was 18 meters and 1.1 seconds, therefore not enough for Nico Rosberg to have actually had his lap compromised.

Lewis Hamilton will therefore still start tomorrows race from 2nd on the grid, alongside reigning World Champion Sebastian Vettel. Nico Rosberg will start from 6th position.

Follow me on Twitter - @AndyYoungF1