Three collisions occurred after the final standing restart at the end of the Australian Grand Prix. But only one driver was penalised and one incident wasn’t even investigated, despite it leading to the retirement of one driver.
Did the stewards make the correct call? Compare the three incidents below and give your verdict.
Incident: Sainz and Alonso
How it happened
Carlos Sainz Jnr restarted the race from fourth, alongside Fernando Alonso to his left on the grid. Alonso made a better getaway and Sainz briefly fell behind Pierre Gasly, who started alongside him.
Both Sainz and Gasly braked late for the first corner. Gasly went off the track, and although Sainz reached the apex of the corner he was unable to avoid Alonso at the exit. The Ferrari’s front-left wheel hit the Aston Martin’s right-rear, tipping it into a spin.
Sainz continued in fourth place, which soon became third when Lance Stroll ahead of him went off, while Alonso was able to rejoin the field at the back of the grid.
What they said
It was a good race overall but the penalty ruined all the effort and I don’t agree with it. The frustration I feel right now will be difficult to digest, but I will try to think only of the positives from today and focus on the next race.
Carlos Sainz Jnr
Probably the penalty is too harsh, I think because on lap one, it is very difficult always to judge what the grip level, and I think we don’t go intentionally into another car, you know?
Because we know that we risk also our car and our final position, so sometimes you ended up in places that you wish you were not there in that moment. And it’s just part of racing, but I didn’t see the replay properly, but for me, it feels too hard.
Fernando Alonso
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The incident in pictures
The official verdict
Sainz was given a five-second time penalty. The stewards said:
The stewards reviewed positioning/marshalling system data, video, timing, telemetry, team radio and in-car video evidence and determined that on the first corner of the restart, a collision occurred between car 55 [Sainz] and car 14 [Alonso]. We determined that car 55 was wholly to blame for the collision.
Car 14 was significantly ahead of car 55 at…
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