Fernando Alonso called the Miami Grand Prix stewards incompetent and unprofessional following the penalty which cost him a points finish at the last race.
He also suggested Niels Wittich, one of F1’s two race directors, lacks sufficient knowledge and experience to oversee grands prix.
The Alpine driver collected two five-second time penalties during the Miami Grand Prix. The first was for a collision with Pierre Gasly and the second was for cutting the track and gaining an advantage while running ahead of Mick Schumacher.
Alonso cut the track at turn 15. He argued that he gave up the time advantage he gained. However by cutting the corner he also prevented Schumacher from being able to activate DRS approaching turn 17, as he had on previous laps. Alonso was investigated for cutting the same corner again later in the race, but was cleared, as on that occasion he was judged to have given up the advantage he gained.
The second time penalty dropped Alonso from ninth in the final classification to 11th, out of the points. He described the decision as “unfair”.
“We believe that it was very unfair and it was just incompetence from the stewards,” said Alonso. “They were not very professional, I think, in Miami.
“I missed one corner and then I gave back the time on the lap but obviously after you miss one corner there is a sector time just after that corner so there is the pink [sector] colour.”
The stewards did not summon Alonso and Alpine to meet with them over the incident, as was the case for all other incidents which occurred during the grand prix. Alonso said his team went to see the stewards afterwards anyway.
“They took the decision without asking any proofs so we arrived after the race with other proofs and all the time back that we gave and they were just packing up. They were not even in the room.
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“We came there, we showed them all the data so they said ‘give us five minutes’ and then they found…