Nate SaundersEditor-in-Chief, F12 minutes to read
Fernando Alonso has been stripped of his 100th Formula 1 podium after a penalty kick at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
The decision elevated George Russell to third, giving Mercedes cause to celebrate after a rocky start to the year, but not before allowing Alonso to celebrate on the podium and collect the trophy.
During the race, Alonso had served a five-second penalty before his first pit stop, punishment for lining up outside the grid box at the start.
It later emerged that Aston Martin had touched his car to make the stop before the five seconds had elapsed.
The FIA confirmed a 10-second penalty shortly after the podium ceremony, something Alonso frustrated because the incident in question occurred midway through the race.
“Today is not good for the fans,” said the Spaniard.
“When you have 35 laps to apply the penalty and you wait until after the podium, something is wrong with the system.
“I feel sorry for the fans, but I enjoyed the podium, I took the trophy, I had the pictures, I celebrated with champagne, and now 15 or 12 points doesn’t change much for me, but it’s a little sad for the FIA, yeah.”
He also said he felt bad that he had denied Russell and Mercedes the chance to celebrate.
“It’s not fair to George and the Mercedes sponsors; they love being on the podium.
“If he’s third in the race, he should be enjoying the podium and not me, I feel sorry for George, for the Mercedes sponsors, for George’s fans.”
The stewards’ ruling stated that the FIA and the teams had previously agreed that “no part of the car may be touched while the penalty is being taken as this would constitute work on the car”.
It added: “In this case, it was clear that the vehicle had been touched with the rear lever. Based on the representation made to Stewards that there was an agreed position that touching the vehicle amounted to ‘work’ on the vehicle, Stewards decided to impose a penalty.”
Lewis Hamilton finished the race 10.3 seconds clear of Alonso, meaning the Aston Martin driver narrowly avoided losing two places to Mercedes.
The decision corresponds to the penalty received by Esteban Ocon for not executing a penalty properly during the Bahrain Grand Prix.
The penalty cost Aston Martin a chance to secure their first consecutive Formula One podium, with Alonso also finishing third in Bahrain.
The Red Bull duo swapped positions from that opening race, as Sergio Pérez held off teammate Max Verstappen, who started 15th, to take the win.
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