In the 1st and 2nd race of the 2023 Formula One Season at the Sakhir Circuit in Bahrain and the Jeddah Corniche Circuit in the Saudi Arabian GP, former teammates, 2X WDC champion Fernando Alonso and Frenchman Esteban Ocon were both penalized leading to a discussion online among fans about FIA rules and regulations.
Esteban Ocon was handed a 5-second penalty for having a ‘wrong start position’ on the grid. The Alpine driver served his penalty for 4.6 seconds after that and was recorded speeding in the pit lane by 0.062 seconds. He then was subsequently handed a 10-second penalty for both infractions that he served properly.
5 seconds for speeding in the pitlane
— WTF1 (@wtf1official) March 5, 2023
Fernando Alonso, on the other hand, was handed a 5-second penalty in the race start at Jeddah for the same infraction as Ocon in Bahrain. He served the penalty properly and was on the way to finishing 3rd across the line and did so too, but in a review, the FIA noticed that when Alonso was serving his 5-second penalty, the rear jack was touching the vehicle and ruled that Alonso would be handed a 10-second penalty.
This meant that Alonso would not be getting the podium place and Mercedes‘ George Russell would be replacing him for the 3rd place finish. This decision was later revoked by the FIA subsequently, giving the podium place back to the Spaniard at Aston Martin.
FIA alters grid boxes
After the conundrum at the Saudi Arabian GP and the Bahrain GP, the FIA has decided to widen the grid boxes. The previous boxes at Jeddah were 2.5m which in turn was 20cm wider than the grid boxes in the 2022 season. From the Australian Grand Prix onwards, the grid boxes will be 2.7m, 20cm wider than the ones in Jeddah.
Fernando Alonso has had his 100th podium reinstated after the FIA decided to reverse their post-race penalty.
Only in F1 🙃 pic.twitter.com/LkmznyxJ7u
— ESPN F1 (@ESPNF1) March 19, 2023
This change can be attributed to the visibility issues the new, redesigned cars of the 2023 season come with.
George Russell, the Mercedes driver, felt like the penalties handed down to Alonso and Ocon were too severe. The Englishman said “I understand why these rules are there, we’ve got to stick within the guidelines, a little bit of common sense needs to be shown,”
Alonso on the other hand, acknowledged his mistake, saying “I need to pay more attention to that,” he added. “[It] is a little bit also strange that in two races, two cars, Esteban and myself. We have similar things.” His ex-teammate, on the other hand, was greatly unimpressed with the FIA and called the penalty “stupid“.
The FIA will widen the grid boxes ahead of the #AustralianGP following recent Ocon and Alonso controversies 👀
Do you think the FIA is doing the right thing? 💬 pic.twitter.com/piwSyVEJ0b
— Motorsport.com (@Motorsport) March 30, 2023
The Frenchman continued “I honestly didn’t know if I was in the box or not in that race either, so I was a bit shaking, but honestly it’s very, very hard, and all the margins are nothing basically.”
With the Australian Grand Prix around the weekend, fans can expect a smaller margin for error on the part of both the drivers and the authorities.