FIA unable to review 1200 potential F1 track limit offences in Austrian GP

The result of the 71-lap race remains provisional as of Sunday evening following a protest from Aston Martin concerning how breaches of track limits were punished.

Of the 20 drivers, only Mercedes racer George Russell and Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso escaped without at least one incident of a track limits violation - the vast majority of which occurred through the high-speed right handers of Turns 9 and 10.

The FIA has revealed that this led to over 1200 cases of cars being reported to race control for potentially leaving the confines of the circuit by having all four wheels stray beyond the painted white lines.

Due to the influx of reports creating an “unprecedent situation”, the governing body has acknowledged that it was unable to review all potential infringements during the grand prix.

An FIA spokesperson said: “Regarding the track limits infringements at the 2023 FIA Formula 1 Austrian Grand Prix, we note that due to the specifics of the circuit layout and the propensity of many drivers to repeatedly drive outside of the boundaries of the track, an unprecedented situation arose which resulted in all potential infringements not being able to be reviewed during the race.

“Prior to the submission of a protest against the result, we had already begun a full review of the track limits infringements, which is ongoing.

“During the grand prix, race control was tasked with reviewing well over 1200 instances where a car was reported as potentially leaving the track.

“The results will be updated once the review of those which were not able to be reviewed during the race is complete.”

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB19

Photo by: Steven Tee / Motorsport Images

Autosport understands that teams were frustrated by the delayed policing of track limits in the race, which may have contributed to them being unable to warn drivers when they were shown a black-and-white flag that they were only one strike away from receiving a five-second penalty.

The FIA has stressed that it will once again push the Red Bull Ring management to install gravel traps, like those used on the outside of Turn 4, to better define the final two corners.

Although, this measure has previously not been implemented due to the Austrian venue also hosting motorcycle racing, including MotoGP.  

The FIA added: “In order to address the issue for future events we will renew our recommendation to the circuit to add a gravel trap at the exit of Turns 9 and 10.

“We note that while this is not a straightforward solution in relation to other series that race here, it has proved to be very effective at other corners and circuits with similar issues.”