Sergio Perez went overboard on the spot when he claimed the stewards at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix were “not up to F1 standards”, but his frustration was understandable.
Perez missed out on a podium finish in the final race of the season after making contact while trying to pass Lando Norris during the final stint, resulting in a five-second penalty.
He then sent a radio message to the Red Bull team after the race, accusing the stewards of not being up to F1 standards, and received a formal warning.
Regarding Norris’ incident, the stewards determined that Perez “dived in late, missed the apex of the corner, and understeered toward the outside of the corner” and made contact with Norris.
He was annoyed and confused by the decision. Especially when Norris ended up cutting the corner and staying in the lead, and then on another attempt Perez had to pass Norris one lap later.
“It takes both sides to communicate,” Perez said. “Landor had some responsibility in that as well, because he turned into me as if there was no one else there.
“I was completely next to him and ended up with tire-to-tire contact.
“He cut the corner and bought some time, but I still had a penalty.
“So, I honestly don’t agree with this decision, but there’s nothing we can do.”
race says
I felt like this incident needed to be handled with a bit of a “do no harm, no foul” logic.
This was another example where the consequences were not considered when determining the penalty for an infraction, only the act itself (in this case Perez punching Norris).
There are good reasons for that, but it’s not always the best way to handle the situation. As each incident is handled at the discretion of the stewards, it is considered appropriate to apply common sense on a case-by-case basis, as penalties do not necessarily have to be imposed.
Asked by a racing newspaper if he ever thought a penalty was not necessary because the situation would resolve itself, even if one driver was found to be at fault by the stewards, Perez replied: Ta. [Norris] I had nothing to lose by doing so. On the contrary, he gained.
“But when you make contact with each other, both cars need to do that to make that kind of contact, and I think he had some responsibility as well.
“In my opinion, it was 50-50, but he ended up losing nothing and even if he had something to gain. [from it].
“To be honest, it’s hard to understand why we got the penalty.”
Perez had to face the stewards with whom he had a disagreement after the race, and the matter was discussed, but he was not physically present for it.
Instead, he was summoned for violating international sporting regulations. Probably because of this radio message. “We deserve a podium on the track. We deserve a podium.” But these stewards are not at F1 level. ”
This was deemed a “personal insult” by the stewards and, as this was the final race of the season, it could not be referred to the stewards committee at the next Grand Prix, so in an unusual move Perez was summoned to deal with the matter himself. It was done. .
Mr Perez issued a “heartfelt apology” to each steward for what he said were “spur-of-the-moment” comments he did not expect to be broadcast.
Stewards noted that Perez was not known for making such comments and was “always extremely respectful at Stewards’ hearings,” adding that “there was a constructive discussion regarding the use and broadcast of team radio messages.” ‘ was also said to have taken place between Perez and Red Bull representatives.
They have also taken time to consider the matter with Norris, and while Perez still disagrees with the decision, he insists the stewards “could understand” their point of view.
