George Russell argued that enforcement agencies may need to adopt a new way of thinking when it comes to punishing drivers for causing an accident.
George Russell proposed an alternative way for Formula 1 race juries to deal with in-race penalties. During the Japanese GP, Red Bull’s Sergio Perez received a five-second penalty for contact with Kevin Magnussen.
He also received another five-second penalty for a late-race collision with Alexander Albon at the previous round in Singapore. Referees have several penalty options available, from a five-second time penalty to a stoppage penalty.
However, traditionally in recent years 5 and 10 second penalties have been used when there was contact between drivers. In Singapore, Perez’s penalty was effectively absorbed without penalty when he finished more than five seconds ahead of ninth-placed Liam Lawson, while in Japan Perez “retired” to serve his sentence, so it could not be transferred to Qatar. , which is not prohibited by any rulebook.
Russell’s idea Russell suggested that inspectors should consider accidents or the immediate consequences of accidents when solving cases. The Mercedes driver cited a collision with Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz at last year’s US GP and said he probably deserved a driving penalty – instead he received a five-second penalty.
“I was in a situation where watching Austin last year, when I made a mistake with Carlos, I gained five seconds,” he told media including RacingNews365. “It was probably worth the drive.
It’s hard because we say we shouldn’t judge the consequences of an event. “But sometimes you have to judge the consequences of an event.”
