The stewarding by the FIA recently has been questionable, to say the least. The decision-making by the race director and stewards impacted the outcome of one of the greatest seasons of all-time in 2021. Although it has been a rather positive start to the season, Alfa Romeo team principal Frederic Vasseur is hoping that there is consistency in the decisions taken by the stewards.
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One of the biggest complaints by the teams and drivers about the FIA has been the inconsistency in the regulations. The Alfa Romeo team boss called FIA for wrongly penalizing Zhou Guanyu at the Saudi Arabian GP. Vasseur reveals that he does not agree with Zhou’s penalty given by FIA.
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Alfa Romeo team boss expects FIA to remain consistent throughout the season
The FIA handed a 5 second time penalty to the Chinese driver after he overtook Albon outside the track and gained an advantage. But he defended his driver by stating that he overtook him first, then gained an advantage by going straight.
Vasseur revealed he will remind FIA to be more consistent in the 2022 season. As he believes from now on, FIA should penalize every driver the same.
Formula One F1 – Spanish Grand Prix – Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain – May 7, 2021, Alfa Romeo Racing Team Principal Frederic Vasseur talks in the Team Principals Press Conference FIA/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS – THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALE. NO ARCHIVES
“It’s fine if they’re consistent, so if it’s judged that way now, it should always be judged that way. But we’re going to remind them next time. It’s not that he went straight and then overtook Albon, he overtook Albon and then shot straight,” said Fred.
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It is hard to disagree with the comments made by Alfa Romeo’s team boss. The consistency will allow teams and drivers to know the margins on the track and what they can and cannot do.
Also, it is important for the sport to avoid another controversy surrounding race penalties and decisions, like the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. But so far, there have been no major controversial decisions made by the new race directors.
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But it would be interesting to see if this pattern continues to let the drivers race as hard as possible. Hopefully, we’ll see the same level of racing for the entire season without much intervention from the FIA and the stewards.
