FIA to respond to Hamilton fuel incident with new rule

A clear rule is likely to be written into the regulations as a response to the incident at the end of qualifying in Canada.

Pole sitter Lewis Hamilton was fined and reprimanded by stewards for driving too slowly on his Q3 in-lap and then stopping on the circuit, so that enough fuel was left in the tank for a test sample.

“We must not come to a situation where cars run out of fuel after their last lap because they want to be qualifying as light as possible,” FOTA technical chairman Ross Brawn said in Montreal.

The situation was reportedly discussed in a meeting on the Sunday of the race, with the FIA’s Charlie Whiting clarifying that drivers who run out of fuel during subsequent qualifying sessions will be summoned to the stewards.

And according to reports in Finland’s Turun Sanomat and Autosprint in Italy, the issue was further discussed on Monday at the F1 Commission, ahead of the World Motor Sport Council meeting in Geneva on Wednesday.

It is believed a new rule will require a certain amount of fuel to be in the tank after the final qualifying segment.

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