Fernando Alonso says he is confident his points in Austin will be restored after a post-race time penalty, and if the FIA does not decide in his and Alpine’s favor, a worrying precedent could be set in the future.
The Alpine rider acknowledged the ‘roller coaster’ he had last time as he moved up the field twice, with a huge crash in between, before his seventh place was later stripped away.
He crossed the line as usual, but a post-race protest filed by Haas alleged his car was running in unsafe condition, with damage to Alonso’s Alpine, including a loose rear-view mirror that slid off. eventually flew away later in the race.
He was not given the black and orange flag to signal a pit stop for driving a dangerous car, a decision the stewards later criticized when they handed him a 30-second penalty after the race.
This knocked Alonso out of the points entirely, the team since filing a counter – believing Haas protested the result 24 minutes after the post-race deadline.
The two-time world champion has praised the FIA for its “transparency” in the way it has made decisions with drivers and teams this season, and is “very confident” that his sanction will be overturned.
Asked about his feelings about Haas’ protest, he said, “Let’s wait for the result today.
“Obviously I was very disappointed. It was a rollercoaster of emotions for me on Sunday. Started at the back, then we were like P6, we had the crash, again last, then finished P7, then the evening again, off the dots – so it was ups and downs all day.
“And now let’s wait and see. I think I’m very optimistic that we will hold on to seventh place. The FIA has been very transparent with us this year.
“I think the new management also with Mohammed [ben Sulayem, FIA president] do things a little differently than in the past.
“So I have full confidence in what they will decide. I think there are a couple of things that are very clear and have been done wrong on their end.
“So like I said, I’m very confident that it will be P7 again in Austin. If I’m not P7 at the end, I’m sure they’ll explain why and we’ll figure it out. So you know , I’m very, very relaxed about it.
The FIA is due to rule on the case on Thursday night in Mexico, either upholding Alonso’s sanction or reversing the course if it turns out Haas’ protest was filed too late.
But even with the timing element, the Alpine rider feels there are more reasons why he should keep his place and, if he doesn’t, a metaphorical Pandora’s box could be opened in future appeals. .
“We brought this in basically because it was out of time,” Alonso explained. “And there were a few things that the FIA didn’t show me the black and orange flag, so they felt the car was safe to keep driving.
“The car went to parc fermé, passed all the technical checks, the green light in parc fermé, then the complaints came too late.
“So between all of us, I think there is no doubt that it was not the right decision to take. And if it is the right decision to take, it will open up a huge problem for the future of Formula 1.
“I think 50, 60, 70 per cent of the cars will have to give up the car when they have an aerodynamic device that’s not attached properly because it’s going to be dangerous, the car.
“It will also open, if 20 minutes too late is good for protesting, is a month too late? Is an hour too late? 10 years is too late? When is it too late? So, as I said, it’s a very important day for our sport.
“I don’t care about the seventh, you know? I am not fighting for the world championship. but if this continues, I think we don’t want to open this box.
Read more: Why Fernando Alonso’s disproportionate penalty shows the FIA needs to reverse course
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