Haas team boss Guenther Steiner claimed Formula 1’s penalty system “isn’t working properly” after Alex Albon and Kevin Magnussen collided at the British Grand Prix.
The Dane was pitched into the barrier at the final corner on the opening lap as the Red Bull driver tried to capitalise on Magnussen running wide out of the Vale chicane.
Ultimately, Albon was given a five-second penalty but used a two-stop strategy to recover back through the field before benefiting from the late drama for Valtteri Bottas and Carlos Sainz.
“Obviously we had to do a lot this weekend, so P8, I mean it’s not what I want but it’s damage limitation,” said the Thai driver. “We were a little fortunate with the punctures to get there. It was an okay race.
“I think the penalty, it was 50/50 to me,” he added. “Kevin went off the track and the way he came back on, there was the space there initially and then I realised, ‘Okay, he doesn’t see me.’
Early drama at Silverstone ?
And an early exit for Kevin Magnussen after a big collision with Alex Albon ?#BritishGP ?? #F1 pic.twitter.com/b6Je5qUZgq
— Formula 1 (@F1) August 2, 2020
“The gap was closing really quickly and I tried to get away from it but at that closing speed it was just too much.”
Adding his view, Red Bull boss Christian Horner naturally backed Albon on the clash.
“Kevin’s made a mistake, he’s got out wide on the kerb there, and Alex has sort of committed then he’s backed out of it,” he analysed.
“For me, it was a racing incident; the five-second time penalty was probably fair at the end of the day so that’s what we got.
“But then his recovery after that, he drove a great race today to recover right from the back of the field, to come back through for P8 with some great passing again.
“The last couple of laps were really exciting.”
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Magnussen was a little frustrated with Albon, suggesting his move was “poorly judged” and “it would have been very easy for him to wait”.
But after seeing his drivers penalised more harshly post-race in Hungary, after being instructed to pit on the formation lap, Haas boss Steiner was furious.
“The penalty system is not working properly,” he stated to Motorsport-Total.com.
“In Hungary, we went into the pits before the race and punished ourselves by starting from the pit lane, yet still got a 10-second penalty, and here we are taken out of the race on the first lap.
“It was his (Albon’s) mistake because he was punished, but it was only five seconds and we were out of the race.
“The punishment doesn’t always fit the crime,” Steiner concluded.
