Alessandro Giusti penalised after Spielberg F3 Feature Race start procedure breach

Giusti handed post-race penalty in Spielberg

Alessandro Giusti has been given a 10-second time penalty following the conclusion of Sunday’s FIA Formula 3 Feature Race in Spielberg, after the Stewards determined that he had failed to engage the required start set-up procedure.

The decision came after the Stewards received a report from the Technical Delegate. They then heard from Giusti, a team representative and the Technical Delegate before reaching their conclusion.

Data confirmed the procedural breach

Both Giusti and the MP Motorsport representative admitted they were aware of the incident and accepted the outcome. That acknowledgement appears to have left little room for dispute once the car data and the regulatory requirement were placed together.

The penalty had a significant impact on Giusti’s final result. Having initially finished 11th, the Frenchman was dropped to 22nd in the final classification once the 10-second sanction was applied.

Classification reshaped after Austria F3 race

The post-race penalty added another layer to an already important FIA Formula 3 Sunday in Austria. For the broader context of the race result, read our full report on how Noah Strømsted won the Austria F3 Feature Race at Spielberg.

For Giusti, the outcome represents a costly procedural error rather than a racing incident. In Formula 3, where positions in the lower points range and midfield can be separated by small margins, a 10-second penalty is enough to dramatically alter a driver’s afternoon.

The Stewards’ decision was therefore straightforward in both process and consequence: the required start set-up procedure was not engaged, the breach was accepted, and Giusti’s final classification was revised accordingly.