FIA Clears Lewis Hamilton After Canadian Grand Prix Qualifying Investigation

Lewis Hamilton will start the Canadian Grand Prix from his qualifying position after FIA stewards opted for no further action over an alleged impeding incident with Pierre Gasly. The Mercedes driver was investigated following a moment at Turn 8 during Q1, though both he and Gasly progressed into the second phase of the session.

Why it matters:

A grid penalty would have badly disrupted Hamilton's weekend in Montreal, where he had already visited the stewards earlier in the day over a Sprint battle incident with Oscar Piastri. The decision keeps his race intact and spares Mercedes the headache of fighting back through the field at a circuit where overtaking is never straightforward.

The details:

• Hamilton cleared: Stewards ruled no further action was necessary after hearing from both camps. Hamilton explained he believed Gasly was not on a push lap, an assessment his team shared. Alpine added that they did not view the incident as "unnecessary impeding."
• Aston Martin fined: The team was hit with a €5,000 penalty after releasing Fernando Alonso into Franco Colapinto's path, forcing the Williams driver to swerve and lock up to avoid a collision.
• Stroll's unsafe car: Lance Stroll left the pits with wheel covers still fitted, drawing a €7,500 fine. One cover detached in the pit lane and another on his out-lap, with stewards noting the carbon fibre piece posed a genuine safety risk.
• Perez warned: Sergio Perez received an official warning for breaching Race Director instructions, forcing Alonso to take evasive action at the final chicane.

What's next:

Hamilton can now focus purely on Sunday's race without the threat of a grid drop hanging over him. For Aston Martin, the penalties add another layer of frustration to a difficult weekend, and the team will need a clean race to avoid further operational headaches.