Pierre Gasly is confused about the decisions in F1 British GP with regards to his fight against Lance Stroll and lack of penalties.
From looking to score points in F1 British GP, Alpine’s Gasly ended up in the retirement list after a hectic re-start which saw him fight against Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz and Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll. It was tussle against the Canadian which cost him dearly.
The safety car re-start saw Stroll pounce on Gasly to take the place away but the replays showed the Canadian going off track to take the place. The Frenchman pushed on the radio for the Aston Martin driver to give the place back to him but it didn’t happen.
Gasly eventually got the place back only to be hit by Stroll which ended his race. The Frenchman was not only angered by the Canadian or the lack of penalty by the FIA, but also Sainz as he reckoned that the Spaniard didn’t give him enough room.
Stroll was handed a 5s penalty for causing a collision but wasn’t asked to give the place back to Gasly for his overtake with all four wheels off the track. “To me it was quite clear and it’s been always in the regulation he can’t leave the track and gaining an advantage,” said Gasly to media.
“On everything that I’ve seen he had four wheels off the track passing me, and that’s gaining an advantage. I got down 15 seconds last weekend for track limits, now I lose a position, someone getting off the track and nothing happens. In F2, Victor was in the lead and got a five-second penalty for the exact same thing, so I’m just extremely confused with what’s going on at the moment.
“And you know, it just changes what follows after that… Get back behind him, I managed to get past him on the outside of Turn 7, after I managed to get past Carlos there, he passed us back. And then Lance takes us out of the race in the last chicane. So just extremely disappointed because the first part of the race was going well.
“We were chasing Fernando, there was good speed. I just lacked some straightline speed to try something and get a move on him, but you know, it was still good to be in that pack, and then all our efforts get ruined, you know, with what followed. So disappointed. If you go off the racetrack, you got to give the position back. Just as simple as that.
“If you try and you see you’ve been off the racetrack, just give the position back, and that’s how I’ve been told racing by FIA. I’ve paid the price in different situations. It’s just not fair not having that consistency. Now next race, I’m supposing that going off the line, off the racetrack overtaking someone is allowed.
“And then all of a sudden, you’re gonna end up with a five-second penalty. So I just can’t understand. And it’s… It just doesn’t seem fair. It’s black and white. Track limits, black and white, you either on the track or off the track. Off the race track gaining an advantage – that’s the five-second penalty or give the position back.
“Always happening. And it happened with Victor this morning. So it’s just… I don’t understand that,” summed up Gasly, who has had his fair share of FIA visits this year. The Frenchman is looking for consistency from the stewards especially for drivers going off track to gain track position.
“It’s got to be crystal clear,” said Gasly. “We’re racing at 350 km/h, at the moment which… you know, different situations. Last week, we got penalised for stuff where we feel like we’re not getting the warning properly. And this situation for me as soon as I saw him going off the racetrack, I was like he’ll give the position back.
“And I spent three laps behind losing time in his gearbox where I should not be there. So yeah, just asking for consistency. If that’s allowed, fine. But it’s got to be allowed for everyone,” summed up Gasly, as Stroll joked about meeting the Frenchman in the parking lot to lighten the conversation during his media session.
He is of the view that he was forced off which is why the stewards did not take a call for that move. In fact, he felt the contact was also not his fault as he now has seven penalty points on his superlicense after the 5s time penalty he got.
“I got forced off the track both times I passed him, so I’m not really sure why I got a penalty because I was given no room,” said Stroll to media. “I got a track limits for one and I was forced wide and forced wide and then the next time I passed him again I was given no room. I was forced wide and then I came back on the track and we touched. If I was given more room I wouldn’t have had to come back on the track and we wouldn’t have touched.”
Here’s the moment between Pierre Gasly and Lance Stroll: https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/video.2023-british-grand-prix-stroll-hit-with-five-second-penalty-for-gasly-collision.1770957552360434657.html
Here’s how F1 British GP panned out
