How Ferrari can get payback for F1's 'stupidest' penalty
- Posted by cruz on Nov 20, 2023
After receiving one of the most unlucky F1 penalties in recent memory, Ferrari still has TWO shots at payback.
Carlos Sainz copped a very controversial 10-place grid penalty for the Las Vegas Grand Prix after sustaining major damage because of a track fault, just a few minutes into the new race’s first ever practice session.
Sainz struck a loose water valve inspection cover in FP1, which badly damaged his car’s floor, chassis, seat and engine.
Ferrari had to give Sainz a new battery among his replacement engine parts, which triggered an automatic 10-place drop because doing so exceeded his seasonal allocation for that component for the first time.
EVEN the stewards knew this was massively harsh, acknowledging “the damage was caused by highly unusual external circumstances” and admitting they WOULD have waived the penalty if only they had a legitimate way to do so.
It sparked universal sympathy for Sainz and a few choice criticisms of the rules, the officials and the apparent politic