Carlos Sainz believes that the easiest way to overtake a driver is now to simply shout a complaint over the radio.
Sebastian Vettel was the only one barking grievances over the radio in last Sunday’s Mexican Grand Prix. Sainz was on the receiving end of a five-second penalty after Fernando Alonso complained that he had been squeezed onto the grass by the Toro Rosso driver.
“You know, you can always complain on the radio,” Sainz said.
“I would’ve probably done the same, open the radio and ask for a penalty – it’s the easiest and most straightforward thing to do to overtake a guy, and we all do it.
“I don’t really mind, we all get a bit overexcited over radios, so I will not blame him for that. I just think the penalty is a bit too harsh from the stewards.”
Sainz pointed to a double standards attitude by the FIA, considering that worse maneuvers by other drivers have gone unpunished, which in turn has led to a lack of consistency in judgment.
“I’ve seen [drivers] not getting penalties for something much worse – obviously. If I put Fernando in a dangerous situation, I’m sorry about that, but it’s racing, it’s lap one, it’s not like I’m going to give up any position for free, especially when I’m nearly one full car length ahead.
“The overlap was very small [between the cars] and he just kept it flat out. Which, good for him, brave, but… it’s not like I was going to leave the door open, especially because I saw him late.”
For Sainz, the FIA must decide whether to strictly apply a fixed rule, or examine each incident on a case by case basis.
“I heard today that there were very similar situations to mine with Fernando, and there were no penalties applied.
“This is what Formula 1 needs to understand, whether to look at it accident-by-accident or to put a fixed rule, like [with] moving under braking.
“I don’t know, nowadays it’s just very difficult to know what’s going to happen to you when you do a certain move that is a tiny bit on the limit, then you are risking yourself for a penalty or nothing.”
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