After the sanctions received by
Esteban Ocon
in Bahrain and
Fernando Alonso
in Saudi Arabia, for mislocating their cars to start the first two rounds of the
Formula 1
season , the FIA decided to introduce a modification to prevent similar situations from occurring in the future.
At the
Australian Grand Prix
, the third round to be held this weekend in Melbourne, the grid boxes that make up the starting grid will be 20 centimeters wider, to help drivers more easily position their cars correctly within the limits. determined by the drawer lines.
Article 48 of the F1 sports regulations establishes which are the infringements at the start that could cost the drivers some punishment.
One of the three detailed explains that a penalty of between 5 and 10 seconds will be imposed on the rider if
"any part of the contact zone of his front tires is outside the front and side lines at the time of the starting signal
. "
That was the transgression that Ocon and Alonso committed.
In
Bahrain
, where the curtain on the 2023 championship was raised on March 5, the stewards considered that the right front tire of the
Frenchman's
Alpine
, which started ninth, was out of its drawer, for which he was penalized five seconds, which he served. in his first entry into the pits, albeit incorrectly, which earned him an extra penalty of 10 seconds.
"It's not as easy as it seems to park the car in the right place, you can't see anything from where you are sitting," Ocon said.
Photo REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier
The same thing happened with Alonso in
Saudi Arabia
, a little less than two weeks ago.
The Spaniard, who started from second position behind Sergio Pérez, broke the regulations because his
Aston Martin
was displaced to the left of the marked place on the track and received the same penalty as his former teammate (TV images showed that it was not the only one in violation).
And he was also punished with another 10 after serving it illegally, which almost cost him the podium, but which was finally without effect after the appeal of the British team.
The two pilots, at the time, assured that they did not realize that they were in violation.
"It may seem silly that it was too far to the right and it's easy to fix. But it's not. It's not as easy as it seems to park the car in the right place, especially since the cars are so big and we're sitting so low. ." Ocon explained.
"Basically, you can't see anything from where you're sitting. So that's something I'll have to deal with. Let's hope it doesn't happen again."
Alonso acknowledged after the race in Jeddah that he did not realize at the start that he was standing outside the box and that it was only after the end of the race -in which he crossed the finish line in third place- that he noticed how misaligned the car had been. car.
Alonso finished third in Saudi Arabia, but came close to missing out on the podium after starting in the wrong position.
Photo REUTERS/Rula Rouhana
Sergio Pérez
, who was victorious on the Arab track ahead of his teammate
Max Verstappen
and Alonso, expressed his solidarity with the Spaniard and stated: "It's really difficult to see where you're standing. I think I braked too soon, but I don't you have no idea when you're in the car. You don't know if you went too far or too far ahead."
"We need better visibility. It's good that there is a rule, but at the same time, sometimes it's like luck, to be honest, where you position yourself," continued the Red Bull
Mexican
.
The FIA took note of the drivers' complaints.
And also taking into account that "current cars, increasingly wide, have aerodynamic and safety devices that reduce the driver's vision of the wheels," he decided to widen the grid boxes for the Australian event.
Will it be the final solution to the problem?
look also
"His wife is a prisoner": the harsh confession of the man who brought Schumacher to Formula 1
The brief and phenomenal story of Marco Dianda, the 14-year-old boy who amazes Argentine motorsport