Formula 1 must balance "unregulated aggression" versus promoting "diving footballers" when it comes to penalty decisions.
That is the broad reaction after several drivers found themselves earning the wrath of the stewards at the Austrian Grand Prix last Sunday.
The most contentious penalty was given to Lando Norris, who was slapped with five seconds after being deemed to have pushed Sergio Perez off track at Turn 4 early on.
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Norris and Perez fight for P2, but the Red Bull goes wide and drops to P10 through the gravel!#AustrianGP 🇦🇹 #F1 pic.twitter.com/pN65OtXsLw
That time loss likely proved crucial to the McLaren driver's chances of second place at the Red Bull Ring, as it meant he fell behind Valtteri Bottas in the pit-stops and ultimately finished just two seconds behind the Mercedes.
Afterwards, you couldn't find many who agreed with the stewards' decision, while Red Bull boss Christian Horner feared it could set a precedent.
“You don’t want the equivalent of footballers taking a dive by drivers just chucking themselves off the circuit and claiming penalties,” he said. “I think we need to avoid that.
“I know it’s incredibly difficult because we talk about these things very often, and it’s difficult for the race director, but I did feel that maybe the incidents that we did see could have been leant to more racing incidents than been deserving of penalties.
“The incident between Checo [Perez] and Lando, that’s racing. You go around the outside, you take the risk, particularly when you’re not in a position of being ahead.
“These guys have raced in karting from when they were kids, and know if you go around the outside you take the risk, particularly if you’re not ahead.
“So yeah, I think the penalties were a bit harsh and it sort of does slightly go against the ‘let them race’ mantra that we’ve been championing in recent years.”
Having been the "victim" of Norris earlier, Perez then got two penalties of his own for pushing Charles Leclerc off track first at Turn 4 and then at Turn 6.
Later, FIA race director Michel Masi defended all three decisions by stating the drivers hadn't left the required car's width for another driver alongside.
And F1 motorsport boss Ross Brawn argued it was right for the stewards to set strict standards.
"There were some tough decisions regarding penalties in the race," he wrote in his Formula1.com column.
"No one, including the stewards, wants to see penalties and I think they will be debated for a long time.
"But equally, we can’t have unregulated aggression on the track. It’s not what we want to see either. Finding that balance isn’t always easy."
