What Was the FIA Decision Following the Third Red Flag Restart at the Australian GP?

The Australian GP 2023 produced a thriller as three red flags were brought out throughout the race. Shockingly, only 12 drivers finished the race, with the likes of George Russell and Charles Leclerc among the racers that failed to finish.

Among all the restarts that took place following a red flag, the second of them was the most dramatic. Immediately after the race restarted, multiple incidents brought out another red flag.

Since the order had changed drastically before the third red flag was brought out without a sector having been completed, race control was put in a tough spot. They had to decide how they would restart the race and in what order. Here is a look at what the F1 rules state.

F1 rules on restarts

As per the F1 rules, a race resumption must take place behind a safety car in the order of the previous start. For every driver that is out of the race, the racers behind will gain a position.

The rule adds that in such a situation there would be a rolling start. Since there was just one lap remaining in the case of the Australian Grand Prix 2023, the chequered flag was brought out immediately as the drivers crossed the line.

This rule had massive ramifications for Fernando Alonso, who found himself out of the podium and back on the podium without completing a single lap. Once the race restarted following the second red flag, the 41-year-old Spaniard made contact with his compatriot, Carlos Sainz.

Consequently of the contact, Alonso found himself dropping down the order all the way down to 11th from third place. However, since the drivers had not finished a significant portion of the race, race control decided to restart the race in the order of the previous start.

This rule saved Alonso, who found himself back on the podium as a result. As for Sainz, he received a 5-second penalty that dropped him out of the points from fourth place.

Max Verstappen wins chaotic Australian GP 2023

The race was far from simple for championship leader Max Verstappen, who had to deal with several restarts as a result of all the red flags. However, the Dutchman kept his cool and managed to cross the line in first to win his maiden Australian GP.

He was followed by seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton in second, with Fernando Alonso completing the podium. Behind them, Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll finished in fourth, with Sergio Perez finishing in fifth in the other Red Bull.

Further down, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri finished an outstanding sixth and eighth respectively to get McLaren’s first points of the new season. The two were separated by Haas’ Nico Hulkenberg in the seventh.

Behind Piastri, Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu finished in ninth, while Yuki Tsunoda grabbed the final points for AlphaTauri. Meanwhile, Valtteri Bottas and Carlos Sainz were two other drivers that finished the race but were outside the points.

In what was one of the most chaotic races, twelve drivers failed to finish. These included both Alpines (Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly) and also both Williams (Logan Sargeant and Alexander Albon).

The other drivers who failed to finish included AlphaTauri’s Nyck de Vries, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, Mercedes’ George Russell, and Haas’ Kevin Magnussen.