Every 2023 Formula 1 Driver With Points on Their Super License
13 of these drivers have penalty points, can you guess who?
In order to show that a racing driver has the skills and experience needed to pilot a Formula 1 car, they need to get their hands on an FIA Super License. This document is a record of their race wins, entries and any other on-track antics, including penalties they might have picked up, over their racing career.
The license stays with a driver for as long as they want to race in F1, and serves as a record for any bad behavior they might exhibit on track.
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For any breaches of Formula 1’s rules and regulations, or any un-sportsperson-like behavior, drivers are handed penalty points that stick on their record for 12 months. Actions that can earn drivers a penalty point on their license include things like causing a collision, cutting corners on track or failing to follow the race director’s instructions.
If a driver picks up 12 of these penalty points over a 12-month period, they’re instantly given a one-race ban.
Since the system was introduced, no Formula 1 driver has been handed a race ban, but some racers are getting worryingly close. To keep track of who’s at risk and which other drivers have points on their license, we rounded up all the penalty points sitting on all the FIA super licenses in F1.
After two races in 2023, 13 drivers of the current crop of 20 racers now have points on their license, while seven racers are yet to be handed a single one. The well-mannered drivers that have yet to pick up a penalty over the past 12 months include Carlos Sainz Jr., Lewis Hamilton, Oscar Piastri, Valtteri Bottas, Nico Hülkenberg, Nyck de Vries and Logan Sargeant.
But of the 13 drivers that have got at least one point on their Super Licenses, what were these penalties handed out for? Click on through the following pages to find out.
Esteban Ocon (Alpine)
Penalty Points: 3
Causing a Collision: Alpine racer Esteban Ocon picked up his first Penalty point of the past 12 months at the Monaco Grand Prix. During the race in the principality, he was found to have caused a collision with the Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton. (1 Point, expires May 29, 2023)
Causing a Collision: Ocon’s most recent points came during his home race at Circuit Paul Ricard in France. The Alpine racer crashed with the AlphaTauri of Yuki Tsunoda and was handed two points. (2 Points, expires July 24, 2023)
Zhou Guanyu (Alfa Romeo)
Penalty Points: 4
Leaving the Track: Chinese racer Zhou Guanyu was handed his first point of the year for leaving the track and gaining a “lasting advantage” in Saudi Arabia in 2022. (1 Point, expires March 27, 2023)
Track Limits: The Alfa Romeo racer picked up his second penalty point in F1 for exceeding track limits in Austria. (1 Point, expires July 10, 2023)
Causing a Collision: At the 2022 French Grand Prix, Zhou was handed two additional penalty points for causing a collision with Haas driver Mick Schumacher. (2 Points, expires July 24, 2023)
Max Verstappen (Red Bull Racing)
Penalty Points: 2
Causing a Collision: Red Bull driver Max Verstappen picked up two penalty points at the 2022 Brazilian Grand Prix. In the race, he was found to have caused a collision with Lewis Hamilton. (2 Points, expires November 13, 2023)
Sergio Perez (Red Bull Racing)
Penalty Points: 2
Safety Car Procedure: During the 2022 Singapore Grand Prix, Mexican driver Sergio Perez was handed two penalty points for falling more than 10 car lengths behind the Safety Car. (2 Points, expires October 2, 2023)
Charles Leclerc (Scuderia Ferrari)
Penalty Points: 1
Leaving the Track: Ferrari F1 driver Charles Leclerc picked up one penalty point at the Japanese Grand Prix in 2022, where he was found to have left the track and gained an advantage. (1 Point, expires October 9, 2023)
George Russell (Mercedes AMG Petronas)
Penalty Points: 4
Causing a Collision: British driver George Russell picked up two points at the 2022 Austrian Grand Prix after he caused a collision with the Red Bull of Sergio Perez. (2 Points, expires July 10, 2023)
Causing a Collision: Russell was handed two more points after causing a collision with the Ferrari of Carlos Sainz Jr. during the 2022 U.S. Grand Prix. (2 Points, expires October 23, 2023)
Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
Penalty Points: 10
Causing a Collision: Gasly was handed two Super License points at the Spanish Grand Prix, where he caused a collision with the Aston Martin of Lance Stroll. (2 Points, expires May 22, 2023)
Leaving the Track: At the 2022 Austrian Grand Prix, he picked up one more point for leaving “the track without a justifiable reason multiple times.” (1 Point, expires July 10, 2023)
Causing a Collision: A further two points were added during the 2022 Austrian Grand Prix for causing a collision with German racer Sebastian Vettel. (2 Points, expires July 10, 2023)
Speeding: Another two points added for the 2022 race in Suzuka, where stewards found that he was “speeding under red flag conditions.” (2 Points, expires October 9, 2023)
Safety Car Procedure: When F1 came to Austin, Texas, for the U.S. Grand Prix, the Alpine driver picked up two points after he “fell more than 10 car lengths behind during the Safety Car period.” (2 Points, expires October 23, 2023)
Leaving the Track: Gasly gained his 10th point at the 2022 Mexican Grand Prix, where stewards found that he left the track and gained an advantage. (1 Point, expires October 30, 2023)
Lando Norris (McLaren)
Penalty Points: 3
Track Limits: McLaren racing driver Lando Norris picked up his first point for exceeding track limits during the Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring. (1 Point, July 10, 2023)
Causing a Collision: The young British driver was handed two further points at the 2022 Brazilian Grand Prix for causing a collision with the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc. (2 Points, November 13, 2023)
Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
Penalty Points: 6
Leaving the Track: The double World Champion was handed his first point during the 2022 Miami Grand Prix, where he was found to have left the track and gained a “lasting advantage.” (1 Point, expires May 8, 2023)
Causing a Collision: Also at the 2022 Miami Grand Prix, Alonso picked up two more points for causing a collision with Pierre Gasly’s AlphaTauri. (2 Points, expires May 8, 2023)
Defensive Driving: Alonso picked up one point during the 2022 Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal, where he was penalized for “more than one change of direction to defend a position.” (1 Point, expires June 19, 2023)
Causing a Collision: Alonso brought his tally up to six at the 2022 Brazilian Grand Prix, where stewards handed him two more points following a collision with Esteban Ocon. (2 Points, expires November 12, 2023)
Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
Penalty Points: 8
Causing a Collision: The Aston Martin driver was handed his first two points in Australia for causing a collision with the Williams of Nicholas Latifi. (2 Points, expires April 9, 2023)
Defensive Driving: During the same race weekend, Stroll picked up another point for “more than one change of direction.” (1 Point, expires April 9, 2023)
Causing a Collision: The driver added two more to his tally at the U.S. Grand Prix in Austin, Texas. During the race, the Canadian was found at fault for a crash with the Alonso’s Alpine. (2 Points, expires October 23, 2023)
Defensive Driving: Stroll picked up three more points during the 2022 Brazilian Grand Prix. Stewards penalized Stroll for dangerous maneuvers while he tried to defend his position. (3 Points, expires November 12, 2023)
Kevin Magnussen (Haas)
Penalty Points: 3
Causing a Collision: Haas driver Kevin Magnussen picked up two penalty points during the 2022 Miami Grand Prix, where he collided with the Aston Martin of Lance Stroll. (2 Points, expires May 9, 2023)
Leaving the Track: Magnussen was handed one more point during the Italian Grand Prix, where stewards found that he “left the track and gained an advantage.” (1 Point, expires September 11, 2023)
Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri)
Penalty Points: 4
Causing a Collision: At the British Grand Prix, AlphaTauri driver Yuki Tsunoda picked up a two penalty points for causing a collision with Pierre Gasly. (2 Points, expires July 3, 2023)
Yellow Flag Procedure: Tsunoda was handed two more points at the 2022 Italian Grand Prix in Monza, where he was penalized for failing to slow under yellow flags. (2 Points, expires September 9, 2023)
Alex Albon (Williams)
Penalty Points: 7
Causing a Collision: During his first year as a Williams driver, Alex Albon picked up two penalty points at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix for causing a collision with Lance Stroll. (2 Points, expires March 27, 2023)
Track Limits: Albon’s next point was picked up in Spain after the stewards found that he exceeded track limits. (1 Point, expires May 22, 2023)
Leaving the Track: At the Monaco Grand Prix just a week later, Albon was handed another point for leaving the track and gaining an advantage. (1 Point, expires May 29, 2023)
Forcing Another Driver Off Track: At the Austrian Grand Prix, Albon was handed two penalty points for forcing McLaren’s Lando Norris off the track. (2 Points, expires July 9, 2023)
Leaving the Track: At the U.S. Grand Prix, Albon picked up one final point for leaving the track and gaining an advantage during his fight with the AlphaTauri of Yuki Tsunoda. (1 Point, expires October 23, 2023)
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