FOM and FIA issues combine to disrupt Sprint qualifying in Singapore

The FIA has confirmed human error led to unequal power mode availability during a Sprint qualifying session also impacted by a loss of timing data at the Singapore Grand Prix.

Sergio Perez crashed during SQ1 and left debris on track as he returned to the pits (pictured above), leading to a red flag. Once the session restarted, Overtake Mode was activated and deactivated at one stage in the final six minutes, while the Formula One Management-controlled official timing system also suffered an issue that resulted in some lap times not initially registered at the end of the session.

The FIA and FOM investigated whether the two situations were linked after the end of the session, before the governing body announced it was human error that saw Overtake Mode made available for a small period of time.

“During the first period of Sprint qualifying there was a human error in race control unrelated to the timing issue also encountered in SQ1,” an FIA statement read. “This issue in question meant Overtake Mode was not available after the red flag period during SQ1.

“When it became apparent that Overtake Mode was not active after the restart, it was then activated for a period of 27 seconds before being deactivated again.

“The FIA acknowledges that this unfortunate human error had an impact on the performance of certain cars based on the timing of their run and their position around the lap. The second and third periods of Sprint qualifying were not affected.”

The six cars eliminated at the end of SQ1 were Arvid Lindblad, Lance Stroll, Alex Albon, Sergio Perez, Valtteri Bottas and Carlos Sainz. 

The start of SQ2 was delayed while FOM ensured the timing issues would not be repeated and the stewards deliberated whether any further changes should be made after the FIA’s Overtake Mode error – including a brief discussion over running SQ2 with all 22 cars – before the rest of qualifying took place as planned.