Exiting the pitlane in Q1, ahead of the first flying laps of the session, Russell slowly rolled down the pit exit on the inside of the Senna Esses to create a gap to the cars in front.
Because of the narrow nature of the pit exit Russell impeded Alpine driver Gasly, who complained over the team radio about the Briton's antics.
The FIA had actually included a provision for this weekend that allowed drivers to create a gap coming out of the pits after drivers started blocking the pits last week in Mexico, but only on the condition that they stuck to the left and allowed space for cars behind to pass.
But the FIA stewards felt that Russell hadn't done so and had thereby impeded the Frenchman, and slapped him with a two-place grid penalty.
"In order to avoid situations like the ones that occurred in Mexico, the Race Director’s Event Notes for this event contained a specific clause (item 14) stipulating that it was permitted to go slow in the pit exit to create a gap before crossing the SC2 line," said the verdict.
"However, by doing so, a driver must stay as far to the left as possible to allow other drivers to pass on the right side.
"RUS was exiting the pits, preparing for an out-lap. RUS went slow to create a gap for a clear lap, but did not manage to stay completely to the left.
Source: Autosport