Alpine 'strongly disagree' with FIA over Monaco controversy

Alpine executive adviser Flavio Briatore has made clear the team "strongly disagree" with the penalties that stripped Pierre Gasly of a podium finish at the Monaco Grand Prix, questioning the pit lane speeding sanctions handed down by the FIA.

The French driver crossed the line third on the road but was hit with two separate five-second time penalties for fractionally exceeding the 60kph pit lane speed limit, dropping him to seventh in the final classification in Monte Carlo.

Team-mate Franco Colapinto also received a five-second time penalty for the same infraction, but they were not alone.

George Russell, Lewis Hamilton and Oscar Piastri were all penalised for pit lane speeding during the race, with the infringements across the board measured at less than 1kph over the limit.

"After a great start from Pierre that put us in seventh place, the race was looking promising," Briatore said after the Monaco Grand Prix.

"In spite of the great restart after the red flag and Pierre finishing third on the road, we saw the result being taken away by two penalties, which we strongly disagree with.

"These penalties were inflicted to at least four teams on the grid, which makes it a strong case for review."

Alpine has now requested a Right of Review from the FIA, seeking to understand why and how the motorsport governing body's stewards applied the punishments they did.

How pit lane speed is measured and what happens next?

The pit lane speed limit in Monaco is 60kph, and it is enforced via average speed rather than instantaneous readings.

Two timing points are set a fixed distance apart along the pit lane, and the system calculates a car's average speed by dividing that reference distance by the time elapsed between the two loops.

The issue at Monaco appears to stem from the pit entry geometry. Drivers cutting across the entry line can shorten the actual distance they travel between the two timing points.

Because the system uses a fixed reference distance, any shortcutting means the car covers less ground in the same time, artificially inflating its recorded average speed. Even with the pit limiter correctly engaged, this can push the calculated figure marginally over 60kph.

It is worth noting that a Right of Review is distinct from an appeal or a protest. Alpine must present a significant and relevant new element of evidence that was not available to the stewards at the original decision.

The threshold is deliberately high, and a change to the result remains unlikely and may well not be the desired outcome, particularly as some drivers, including Hamilton and Russell, served their penalties during the race itself.

Briatore, though, is already looking ahead: "We maintain fifth position in the constructors' championship, and we are determined to keep the teams' positive momentum in Barcelona and at the upcoming races with more performance and updates being brought to the car."