Carlos Sainz started the Las Vegas Grand Prix from second place after a great qualifying performance on Saturday and managed to keep his position even after the start. Later on, by lap 26, had dropped to third behind eventual winner George Russell and Max Verstappen.

With the Ferraris of Sainz and teammate Charles Leclerc under increasing pressure from Lewis Hamilton, Sainz began urging his team to call him in for a second pit stop.

On lap 27, Sainz let Leclerc pass and was told to pit. But just as he approached the pit lane, his engineer suddenly told him to stay out. This forced Sainz to cut across the pit entry and rejoin the track without stopping.

Sainz, visibly frustrated, questioned the situation, asking: “What happened?!” His engineer, Riccardo Adami, then admitted: “We were not ready.”  

“Wake up guys, come on!” Sainz shouted back.

In doing so, the Spaniard crossed the painted line separating the pit lane from the track—a move that has led to penalties at other races. Surprisingly, the incident wasn’t even investigated by the stewards.

A penalty could have cost Sainz his third place, as he finished just 2.4 seconds ahead of Leclerc. While Sainz might have pushed harder to build a bigger gap, a penalty would have put his podium finish at risk.  

In the end, the decision not to penalize Sainz aligned with Formula 1’s International Sporting Code and the race director’s event-specific guidelines for the Las Vegas weekend, which explain why the Spaniard’s unusual maneuver was not a breach of any rules.

Appendix L, Chapter 4, Article 4 (d) states that “except in cases of force majeure (accepted by as such the Stewards), the crossing, in any direction, of the line separating the pit lane entry and the track by a car entering the pit lane is prohibited.”

Because Sainz didn’t actually enter the pit lane and kept driving on the track, he didn’t break any rules. If he had crossed the line and then entered the pit to stop, he would likely have received a penalty.

Sometimes, the race director adds special rules to the event notes. For example, if a driver crosses the pit entry line with all four wheels to the left of it, they must enter the pit lane. If they don’t, they can be penalized. This rule was applied at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku, but there was no such rule for the Las Vegas Grand Prix.

Sainz’s third-place finish helped Ferrari score 27 points, while McLaren earned only 15, cutting their lead in the Constructors’ Championship to just 24 points, with two races left.