The FIA have sparked controversy again. The Saudi Arabia GP had come to an end after an emphatic weekend. Sergio Pérez turned out to win the race after an outstanding performance, he was followed by Max Verstappen´s incredible comeback and Fernando Alonso closing the podium, confirming that Aston Martin are a serious matter.
"That penalty is pretty harsh" says George Russell
However, what seemed to be a happy ending, achieving his 100th podium in his career, turned out to chaos and disagreement after the podium celebration when the FIA made an official statement, confirming that Alonso did not follow the penalty rules and hence was punished with a 10 second penalty. A harsh punishment for a minuscule detail that even George Russell admitted to be too much, “The penalty on Fernando is pretty harsh. They are deserving podium finishers today”.
"FIA haven't looked very well today" says Fernando Alonso
A P3 that was fully deserved after finishing the race five seconds away from Russell and only +0.535 slower in race pace than Pérez. A controversial decision that only made Alonso laugh, “I don'´t care if they take the podium away from me. After the celebration, 35 laps and an hour they didn'´t do it. The FIA haven'´t looked very well today, we have seen it today”, said Alonso with a smirk on his face as a warning to the bad decision making the governing body had.
“If they told me I had a 10-second penalty, I would have pushed more. It was a race of management. Amidst everything, I leave with a good feeling. A shame not to take the podium”, said the Spanish driver.
After the Saudi Arabian GP, Aston Martin have put themselves above every other team but Red Bull, which are in a different league. However, considering last season and the start of this, it is an incredible result for the British team. “The objective was to see if we could be competitive. We extended the distance whenever and however we wanted with Mercedes and Ferrari. We handled it”, analysed the driver.
"I could have opened the gap to 10 seconds" says Fernando Alonso
A very confident Alonso who assures that he could have extended the distance to +10 seconds if he had known about the final penalty. “Should I have been told that I had to open a 10 second gap, I would have opened it to 11 or 12. I had saved up my tyres and could have done more. It was a race to control Mercedes and Ferrari. I am very happy with this result as I haven'´t still processed it”, concluded.
A very good result for Aston Martin despite Lance Stroll´s stoppage and Alonso's 4th place. Next race in the calender is hosted in Australia. A new chance for the team to gain an advantage to their direct rivals, Mercedes and Ferrari.