Esteban Ocon has expressed frustration over the five-second time penalty he was handed for causing a collision with Lewis Hamilton.
The duo battled in the early stages of the race for eighth place, with Hamilton attempting to make an overtake at Turn 1.
However, contact was made between the pair, with Hamilton suffering front wing damage as a result, while Ocon appeared to escape without major harm.
The Stewards deliberated the incident and opted to issue Ocon a five-second time penalty, stating that there was “a significant portion” of Hamilton’s car alongside Ocon’s, meaning the seven-time World Champion was entitled to racing room.
Ocon says that he was not aware of the rule, with the penalty demoting him out of the points at the chequered flag.
“I’m very frustrated. Clearly, it’s not the end result we wanted,” Ocon said.
“It’s ruining all of the hard work that we’ve done, the whole weekend, this five-second penalty. I don’t think it is very justified.
“I went to see the stewards just now to review the images. There is a new rule that apparently all drivers agreed, that now when we are both alongside and when somebody is attacking, if you don’t leave the room, it’s a penalty, which I never heard of.
“I’m a bit surprised about the penalty, I think the opinion of everyone is that it should be a racing incident and nothing else.
“All this effort for no reason, we could’ve stayed at home this weekend.”
When asked if he would bring the matter up at the next driver briefing in Baku, Ocon said: “Probably. But whatever, it’s done.
“We don’t like to get penalties but no one likes penalties like that at the end of the race. We should race on the track.”
Ocon also received a penalty point on his Super Licence for the clash, which is his fourth in the last 12 months.
Ocon and Hamilton were also involved in another incident in the race, in which Hamilton claimed that Ocon pushed him into the wall as they ran side by side.
However, no punishment was handed out for that clash, with the Stewards not investigating the matter.
There has always been a rule/guidance about leaving racing room. It is, I believe, clarified in the (private) Stewards Guidance Document.
At the beginning of the year this was further clarified. The particular guidance on moving in the braking zone, leaving racing room and some others were ISSUED as part of the drivers briefing to both F1 and F3 drivers. I don’t know if hard copies were handed to each driver, but the documents are on the FIA Web Site.
However they are not in the Rules section as appendices to ISC & F1SR & F3SR, but remain in the event documents, so a bit hidden even from the search function.
So for Occon to plead ignorance is a bit specious.
On the other hand, although there has been some formal review & revision and approval by commissions of rules, its hardly been well publicised or even ethical. In general, the whole organisation of rules is a mess, and very illogical. Any guidance on interpretation should be as freely available and managed in the same way as rules.
Anybody notice that the specification of Trophies, after the rule has been ignored for years, disapeared this year from ISC?
We certainly noticed the decision to resurrect the enforcement of drivers clothing and jewellery ban rules, which had been ignored for nearly 2 decades. Despite major changes in mechanical and thermal protection during that time, there was no formal review. A few qualitative excuses were put forward. Seemed like a knee jerk reaction to the Grosjean crash and fire, but no report was ever issued, just a summary of a few actions.
However the idea that jewellery enhances burns was disproved as Grosjean’s wedding ring has the least scarring under it!!
Its nice to see FIA trying to improve the rules & guidance, but they don’t seem to be very competent at doing it.
Now that Hamilton’s officially British aristocracy, he may enjoy as many lapses in judgement as he desires. The more lapses in judgement he makes, the more other drivers will be punished.
Every single time Hamilton makes a lapse in judgement, attempting an impossible pass, FiA rewards him, penalizing the other driver. Lastest instance: poor Esteban Ocon.
Hamilton did exactly the same thing to Felipe Massa, trying to pull off an impossible pass, Grand Prix of India, turn 5, 2011. Just like Esteban Ocon, F1 penalized Felipe, for Hamilton’s lapse in judgement!
I agree. That was Hamilton’s fault, all the way. Were it the other way around, Ocon attempting exactly the same pass Hamilton did, Ocon would have been punished, nonetheless.
The big problem we have, biased British commentary. Pro-Hamilton, Martin Brundle is anything but objective. I’m sick ‘n tired of him. I wished they’re push him into the pool.
Once upon a time a capital offense, Esteban Ocon is duly punished, for his failure to kneel and grovel, to British aristocracy. Lowly unworthy Frenchman, Esteban Ocon, failing to move over for the pride of England, “Sir” baby-Lewis, almighty FiA is wise, benevolent, kind. Only penalized championship points, Esteban will not be shot, hung, beheaded, or impaled.
Disgusting thing to have to see, F1’s gravy boat tilting, straight into Lewis Hamilton’s mouth. Different rules for different people, Lewis Hamilton enjoys preferential treatment, over all other F1 drivers.
FiA is hopelessly biased. Lewis Hamilton’s getting preferential treatment. Everybody knows it.
A de facto sporting rule in F1, all drivers must kneel before Sir Lewis, whensoever he commands. They must always be at fault, severely penalized when his royal highness flubs an overtaking maneuver.
Though Hamilton botched the pass, he can never be blamed nor punished for it, not without disappointing Queen Elizabeth, risking her knights of the round table, coming down on F1. Crux of the dilemma, they had to blame someone. So perfectly plausible a rule, blaming a Frenchman anytime an Englishman errs, who could blame F1 stewards for blaming Esteban Ocon? That’s the attitude in Formula 1.
Notice how faceless these F1 stewards are, cloaked in anonymity, making arbitrary decisions hiding behind closed doors, no accountability whatsoever.
Trouble in Formula 1 is, stewards can never make an official determination unless it’s first cleared through his royal highness, “Sir” Lewis Hamilton.
In the history of F1, has there ever been a more protected driver than Lulu? Maybe old man Schumacher? He got away with some pretty dirty driving (except when he hit Villeneuve in 1997 and almost killed Massa in 2011 or 2012)
Hamilton has a long history of tapping the rear wheel of drivers ahead of him, to try and spin them out. Or, indeed, of simply ramming opponents off the track, as with Magnussen last week in Spain. Yet he somehow always gets away with it. He is a dirty driver, and an insidious presence around the sport, which will be infinitely better off when his time is over.