Audi summoned by stewards after Slater released with fan in sidepod
Stewards opened an investigation into Audi after first practice in Mexico City, where 18-year-old rookie Freddie Slater left the garage with a cooling fan still in the sidepod. The team recalled him; no decision has been published.
An unusual start to a debut
Freddie Slater's first Formula 1 practice session did not begin smoothly. The 18-year-old Briton, who took Gabriel Bortoleto's Audi for the opening session of the Mexico City Grand Prix weekend, drove out of the garage with a cooling fan still inside the right-hand sidepod, according to RacingNews365 and PlanetF1. Audi recalled him to the pits, where the fan was removed, and he went out again.
After the session, the stewards opened an investigation into Audi for the car being released in what the reports describe as an unsafe condition. Neither outlet reports an outcome or a penalty, and the stewards' process had not concluded when the articles were written.
A short session
Slater's morning was disrupted a second time. After a brief further run he was told to come back in, and once he was stopped in his grid box the team asked him to switch off the engine, saying it would not continue. RacingNews365 counts six laps and no time on the board at that point.
The fault was fixed with just under eleven minutes left and Slater returned. According to the reports he set his first time on his ninth lap, 4.3 s behind Charles Leclerc, then improved to 1:20.945 on his final push lap. Our OpenF1 data confirms that figure: 14 laps in total, 2.817 s behind Leclerc's 1:18.128, good for 21st of 22 classified drivers, ahead only of Colton Herta in the Cadillac.
Who is Slater
Slater is an Audi junior and was runner-up in the 2026 Formula 3 championship, per PlanetF1. The Mexico City session was the first of the two rookie outings Audi must complete this year; the second is planned for first practice in São Paulo next weekend. Teams are required to give young drivers a minimum number of such sessions during the season, which is why ten rookies took part in this one.
What happens next
An unsafe-release case is usually decided by the stewards at the circuit and is published in the official documents of the event. Sanctions for similar cases have ranged from reprimands to fines, but nothing has been announced here, and we will not guess at the outcome. Practice 2 followed on Friday evening, and Audi's focus will move to qualifying on Saturday, where Bortoleto returns to the car and carries a five-place grid penalty for an extra control electronics unit, as reported by RacingNews365.
