Williams have lodged a right of review request over Carlos Sainz’s controversial penalty for colliding with Liam Lawson at the Dutch Grand Prix.
Sainz tried to overtake Lawson around the outside at Turn 1 on a Safety Car restart with the pair battling for the points positions, but they made contact and both drivers received punctures.
The stewards gave Sainz a 10-second time penalty and two penalty points on his super licence which the Spaniard declared a “complete joke” after the race.
The stewards said Sainz’s front axle was not ahead of Lawson’s which meant the Racing Bulls driver had “the right to the corner” therefore Sainz was “wholly or predominantly to blame”.
Sainz finished 13th in Zandvoort and although his 10-second time penalty cannot be reversed, his two penalty points can.
A Williams team statement said: “We can confirm we have submitted a right of review to the FIA relating to Carlos’ penalty in Zandvoort. It is important for us to understand how to go racing in future, and we are hopeful of a positive outcome.”
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Look back at some of the most dramatic moments to have taken place at the Italian Grand Prix
Earlier on in the press conference ahead of this weekend’s Italian Grand Prix, Sainz said he spoke to the stewards after Zandvoort and alluded that they admitted the penalty was wrong.
“It was very clear to me that as soon as they got all the evidence right and they looked at the places they needed to take the right decision, it was clear to me that I think they realised probably the decision taken wasn’t the best one,” said Sainz.
“Now we are trying to see if we can come up with enough evidence to change the outcome of the penalty, because I still firmly believe it was a very poor penalty I received and a bad judgment, which can happen as long as you have the capacity to revisit it.
“If there’s been a misunderstanding or a lack of evidence or analysis, then there is still time to re-analyse it, reopen it, and change it. I do believe they had a very difficult Sunday looking back at it. They had a very busy afternoon, and maybe it was overwhelming because of the amount of stuff that happened in the race.
“But I still firmly believe what I thought after the race. Now in a cooler-headed state, I still believe the penalty was not acceptable, and I made it very clear.”
Williams’ Sainz is 17th in the Drivers’ Championship
Williams had until 96 hours after the Dutch Grand Prix, which takes them to Thursday evening, to file a petition for a right of review.
They officially lodged the request on Thursday afternoon within the allotted time period.
The team must bring forward a “significant and relevant new element” that was unavailable at the time the decision was made for it to be overturned.
Sainz calls for permanent stewards
Sainz’s penalty highlighted the ongoing debate about racing in Formula 1 over the last 12 months, with drivers pushing the rules by trying to get their nose ahead of the other to have the right to the corner.
This has led to drivers often, what appears, to be forcing another driver off the track but this type of action is rarely penalised. However, there is also a consensus that the penalties given to drivers are inconsistent from race to race due to different stewards at each event.
“I’ve always said it, and I will always support the idea, that in F1 we should have fixed stewards,” said Sainz.
“The regulations are already incredibly complex, it would be very useful to always have the same people judging and applying them, because then you know what you’re dealing with.
Carlos Sainz says the stewards’ decision is “not acceptable”
“My belief is that’s the way forward. I’m not speaking for the GPDA or anyone here. That’s my individual belief. I think they have an incredibly difficult job, and sometimes they also have restricted time.
“I think what happened in my case in Zandvoort was a consequence of trying to rush a decision without looking deep enough in the analysis.
“If you just apply the rule in the rulebook, you could understand why they would want to penalise me. The moment you analyse the onboard footage and go into detail, you can clearly see why I should have never got a penalty. But the opposite can be applied for the incident Lewis [had in Zandvoort].
Carlos Sainz is hoping to lose the two penalty points he was given by the stewards in Zandvoort
“Maybe in the Lewis incident, the decision process took too long, and he’s now having to suffer a penalty in Monza when he did nothing wrong here. He had half an hour during the race to pay a penalty for his infringement.
“That shows how difficult the process is, how difficult everything is to handle, and why there’s always improvements to be made and it needs to be a collaboration between drivers, FIA, GPDA, to try and find better solutions. Zandvoort exposed why we are not at the right level yet for such a difficult but incredible sport to watch.”
Sky Sports F1’s Italian GP Schedule
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Look back at some of the most dramatic moments to have taken place at the Italian Grand Prix
Friday September 5
8.30am: F3 Practice
9.55am: F2 Practice
12pm: Italian Grand Prix Practice One (session starts at 12:30pm)*
1.55pm: F3 Qualifying
2.50pm: F2 Qualifying
3.35pm: Italian Grand Prix Practice Two (session starts at 4pm)
5.15pm: The F1 Show
Saturday September 6
8.10am: F3 Sprint
11.15am: Italian Grand Prix Practice Three (session starts at 11:30am)
1.10pm: F2 Sprint
2.15pm: Italian Grand Prix Qualifying build-up
3pm: ITALIAN GRAND PRIX QUALIFYING*
5pm: Ted’s Qualifying Notebook
Sunday September 7
7.10am: F3 Feature Race
8.40am: F2 Feature Race
10.40am: Porsche Supercup Race
12.30pm: Grand Prix Sunday: Italian GP build-up
2pm: THE ITALIAN GRAND PRIX*
4pm: Chequered Flag: Italian GP reaction
5pm: Ted’s Notebook
*also on Sky Sports Main Event
Formula 1’s European season concludes with the Italian Grand Prix – watch the whole Monza weekend live on Sky Sports F1 from Friday. Stream Sky Sports with NOW – no contract, cancel anytime
