Carlos Sainz was hit with a time penalty for crashing into Fernando Alonso dropping him out of the points means that, along with Charles Leclerc's DNF, Ferrari leave the Australian Grand Prix pointless.
A crash on the first corner for Charles Leclerc and a late penalty for Carlos Sainz at the 2023 Australian Grand Prix on Sunday capped off a dismal weekend for Ferrari, with the Italian team well adrift of leaders Red Bull. Max Verstappen was victorious at the Albert Park circuit after a chaotic race with three red flags.
Sainz was given a five-second time penalty for making contact with Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso at the second restart. With the race ending under a Safety Car, that sent him from fourth to 12th in the final standings.
"I think it's the most unfair penalty I've seen in my life," Sainz told reporters. "I prefer to go back and talk to (the race stewards)... and maybe then I can come back and talk.
"I think it's too unfair and I don't feel well (enough) to speak," the Spaniard insisted.
Speaking later in Ferrari's press release, Sainz reflected: "I had a good start and felt confident on the medium tyre but we were unlucky, pitting just before they brought out the first red flag and I dropped down to P11.
A solid race ruined by the penalty
"From there I managed to pull off a good comeback with nice overtakes and solid pace, so for that I’m happy," he added. "It was a good race overall but the penalty ruined all the effort and I don’t agree with it.
"The frustration I feel right now will be difficult to digest, but I will try to think only of the positives from today and focus on the next race," he concluded.
Earlier, Leclerc crashed out on turn one of the first lap after making contact with Aston's Lance Stroll. Race officials determined no further action would be required.
"That's it, Lance touched my rear right wheel," said Leclerc, the winner of last year's race in Melbourne, on the team radio.
In the team's post race media brief, Leclerc referred to the incident as a racing incident as well, he said: "It was unfortunate to end the race this way today, but it was a racing incident and I don’t think that we could have done anything differently.
"Disappointing, but on to the next one where I hope things will run more smoothly again," the Monegasque concluded.
After finishing second in 2022, Ferrari sit fourth in the Formula 1 Constructors' Standings, almost 100 points behind Red Bull and adrift of Aston Martin and Mercedes. (
Reporting by Alasdair Pal
, Additional reporting by GrandPrix247Latest News
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