Controversial conclusion of Saudi Arabia VC: Something is very wrong! It’s time to return to common sense, Alonso criticises the FIA

Formula 1 has completed its second race of the season, namely the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. And it brought a very controversial ending, or rather post-race events, when the FIA awarded Fernando Alonso, third, an additional penalty. However, it later denied the decision and returned his podium position to him.

Fernando Alonso scored another great result in Saudi Arabia, scoring his 100th career podium after Bahrain.

After starting from second place, the Spanish legend took the lead at the first corner when he overtook Sergio Pérez. However, the Red Bull driver hit back on lap three, dropping Alonso to second.

However, the sports commissioners handed him a five-second penalty for a mistake on the grid. Lance Stroll retired his car on lap 18. The safety car was called to the track, which played into Alonso’s hands.

He served his pit-stop penalty and, thanks to the safety car, retained second place behind the Mexican Pérez. However, he lost that position over the next few laps when he was overtaken by Verstappen.

Alonso finished third and took the podium. But then the FIA retrospectively handed him a 10-second penalty for incorrectly completing the five-second penalty. The fault, according to F1 TV’s analysis, lay with the rear jackman, who made contact with the car’s jack during the five-second period.

What does the rulebook say and what about the alleged team agreement?

So Alonso dropped to fourth and third place was awarded to George Russell in the Mercedes. However, Aston Martin representatives then visited the sports commissioners to investigate the matter once more. Indeed, although they concentrated on the fact that the jack had hit the car, the regulations do not explicitly state that mechanics must not touch it while serving a penalty.

In fact, the F1 Sporting Regulations, specifically Article 54.4c, state as follows. “If a car is stationary in pit lane as a result of a penalty under Article 54.3a) or 54.3b) above, no work may be carried out on it until the car has completed its penalty.”

Aston Martin team boss Mike Krack said afterwards that work on Alonso’s monoposto did not start until five seconds had elapsed. However, the FIA argued that there was a consensus among the teams that if mechanics touched the car, it would be considered a breach of the rules.

A few hours after the race, however, the FIA announced that it had changed its mind as Aston Martin confirmed that no such agreement existed between the teams. Alonso’s third place was thus reinstated.

Alonso:: Something is very wrong

“I think it’s not good for the fans when you have 35 laps to apply a penalty and report it. Then you’re waiting for it after the podium. There’s something really wrong with the system, but that’s the way it is,” Alonso said of his penalty in a post-race interview.

“I feel sorry for the fans. But I really enjoyed the podium. It’s just a bit sad from the FIA. I think we need to get back to common sense,” he added of the additional penalty.

“The thing is that they told me I had a five-second penalty. So I pushed harder, worked my way up and I’m still paying for the extra penalty. If someone had told me earlier, I would have taken 11 seconds,” he added before reclaiming third place.

F1, Motorsport