Ferrari trying to revisit past decisions from the FIA seems to be a theme this week, as team principal Fred Vasseur confirms the Maranello-based team will be contesting Carlos Sainz’ five-second penalty from last weekend’s Australian Grand Prix.
Vasseur has voiced his frustration with the erratic nature of penalties dished out by the FIA, following Carlos Sainz's punishment for causing a collision with Fernando Alonso during the tumultuous penultimate-lap standing restart at the Melbourne Grand Prix.
Sainz, who was in fourth place, was stripped of his points position after receiving a five-second penalty for the incident. The chaotic restart saw two other crashes before the race was halted for the third time. While Alonso and Sainz managed to carry on with minimal damage, the other four cars involved in the incidents were forced to retire.
Alpine teammates Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon were also caught up in a serious collision, while Logan Sargeant from Williams collided with AlphaTauri's Nyck de Vries. However, Gasly and Ocon were exonerated by the stewards after the race, while the Sargeant-De Vries crash was not investigated.
Vasseur indicated that his team is displeased with the lack of consistency in the penalties meted out for these incidents, and he hopes to engage in a transparent dialogue with the FIA to avoid future confusion. "Also for the good of the sport, to avoid having to make this kind of decision when you have three cases at the same corner and not the same decision," Vasseur said.
Sainz was crushed by the decision, initially labelling it over the team radio as the "most unjust penalty" he had ever encountered, and later as "the biggest disgrace" in the sport for many years.
The FIA decided to restore the remaining 12 cars to their positions from the standing restart for a processional final lap behind the safety car. However, Sainz's penalty left him with no chance to create distance from the vehicles behind him, ultimately condemning him to last place among those who finished.
Sainz argues that whatever decision had to be taken by the stewards should’ve been made once the race was over and after speaking to the Ferrari driver. An understandable perspective considering the lap where all the incidents took place was essentially made null and void as everyone (who survived) restarted in their original positions.
Vasseur expects the FIA to tackle Ferrari's appeal before the season resumes at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix from April 28-30, but acknowledges that the decision is now in the hands of the governing body of the sport.
The occurrence has re-ignited the long-standing discussion about the fairness of penalties distributed by the FIA, and the importance of a more standardised approach to avoid confusion and controversy in the future. With the season just beginning, it remains to be seen how the FIA will respond to these issues and ensure a just and consistent penalty system going forward.
