Mattia Binotto has demanded the FIA address grid penalties as teams were left confused after qualifying at the Italian Grand Prix. Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen were among seven drivers to be issued grid penalties after taking on new engine parts.
The number of penalties left drivers and teams baffled as to where they should start the race after qualifying had ended. Ferrari has also been affected with Charles Leclerc already taking two back of the grid starts this season.
Binotto said the issue had to be addressed as he called for a reduction in the number of penalties handed out to drivers. The Ferrari team boss has even called for the FIA to increase power-unit allowances which would ensure the majority of teams did not go over the threshold.
Binotto explained: “The reason why it took so long is that there are certainly different interpretations and the regulation is not clear enough.
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Sky Sports host Martin Brundle has also called for the FIA to look into solutions to the “unacceptable situation”. Some of his suggestions include docking teams points for taking on new parts instead of having an impact on the results during a race weekend.
He commented: “Options might include simply giving each driver more power units per season, applying an in-race penalty such as a pit-lane drive-through to be taken at some point in the race, or giving the teams commensurate financial and championship points of pain rather than the drivers having to carry the burden through no fault of their own.
“A mixed-up grid can make for an interesting race observing drivers making their way through the field, but better still is when the six cars with a realistic chance of winning the race are wheel to wheel in the correct grid places.”
