Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso has criticised the FIA over giving Carlos Sainz a penalty for spinning him in a chaotic climax to 2023 Australian Grand Prix.
Alonso had spent the entire race in the top-four after enjoying a solid start with his fourth place becoming third on Lap 8, after Mercedes’ George Russell pitted prior to the first of three red flags and he held the position to the checkered flag.
The Spaniard though attempted to challenge Lewis Hamilton for second position mid-race but the Brit was able to keep Alonso at bay, even after two later red flags.
Reflecting post-race on his battle with Hamilton in which he struggled to get within DRS range despite having saved his hard tyres after the first red flag, Alonso commented: “There were many things going on all afternoon and we had an interesting battle with Lewis [Hamilton] for second.
“The pace of the car was good and we kept up the pressure on Lewis, but he did a good job and didn’t really make any mistakes.”
Alonso though felt that the race produced “a rollercoaster of emotions” in what he described as his most “craziest race here in Melbourne” but admitted that it felt “great” to secure a third consecutive podium finish.
A spin from Sainz’s Ferrari on the second standing restart on Lap 57 though triggered chaos which eliminated four drivers, yet Alonso stated that the FIA were “quite harsh” with their five-second time penalty towards Sainz which dropped his compatriot to 12th in the classification.
Lance Stroll meanwhile benefitted from the late chaos triggered by Sainz’s antics which eliminated Pierre Gasly and saw Sainz penalised, in-turn promoting Stroll to fourth in the classification.
Stroll therefore felt “pleased” with his fourth-placed finish as Aston Martin collected 27 points in total in Melbourne, as a third and fourth placed finish provides the team with a “great” morale boost heading into the Easter break due to the cancellation of Chinese GP.
The 24 year-old Canadian concluded that F1 “is a rollercoaster of emotions” but is relieved to leave Australia with “a solid haul of points for the team” who currently sit second in the Constructors’ Championship.
Team Principal, Mike Krack added that he thinks it is “a relief to see the starting order reinstated.”
Krack though did acknowledge that the result is controversial as he said: “I know some drivers and teams really lost out in the mayhem, but we got a bit lucky with both cars being largely undamaged allowing us to finish the race under the Safety Car.”
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