During the sprint race in Miami, Kevin Magnussen defended his position very hard to help teammate Nico Hulkenberg get points. Magnussen received several time penalties and penalty points, but according to F1 colleague Lando Norris, urgent action must be taken against such behavior.
“This is a type of behavior where things are deliberately done to harm another driver and this behavior is practiced within the same race and repeated several times,” said Stella. “How can punishments simply add up? They should be exceptional. It is not the case that five plus five plus five equals fifteen.”
“It’s completely unacceptable. This is not good sporting behavior and must be addressed immediately.”
“When you drive outside the points, a penalty of twenty seconds or so simply doesn’t matter. But the opponents you have harmed, you have ensured that they are out of the race and that during a deliberate action that you also repeat.”
Remarkably, the FIA took no additional action against Kevin Magnussen and the Dane’s penalties remained the same as previously imposed. Andrea Stella therefore wants the FIA to avoid a dangerous precedent and take action for the future.
“I don’t think they have a reason why, not,” said Stella when asked why the FIA decided not to impose an additional penalty. “I think they were just surprised by the fact that the breach was repeated several times.”
“I am sure the FIA will look into it and the Sporting Advisory Committee will evaluate the proposal. Hopefully, rules or guidelines will be issued soon for stewards to apply.”