Ralf Schumacher expects Carlos Sainz to be penalised at the Formula 1 Dutch Grand Prix despite serving a five-second penalty for ignoring blue flags at Hungary.
Sainz got himself in hot water with the stewards and Oscar Piastri after the Williams driver seemingly ignored multiple blue flag warnings at the Hungarian GP, last weekend.
The McLaren driver had been leading the majority of the 70-lap race when he rocked up to the back of Sainz and Fernando Alonso.
Sainz was obliged to move over and let the race leader lap him, but the Spaniard made contact with Piastri instead, costing the Australian the lead to team-mate Lando Norris.
The stewards did impose a five-second time penalty on Sainz, but Schumacher believes the Williams driver needs to be dealt with a firmer hand – setting a precedent – at the Dutch GP, after the summer break.
“It’s something that makes you furious,” the former Williams driver told the German branch of Sky.
“None of them competed for the points. Then the leader of the race comes, and Sainz drove into his car.
“An absolute no-go from my point of view. A normal punishment is not enough.
“For me, Carlos Sainz should be punished for the next race. In qualifying at Zandvoort, he has to get one.
“Because otherwise this will set a precedent, it must not happen at all.”
Schumacher blasts “unsportsmanlike” backmarkers after F1 Hungarian GP
Sainz wasn’t the only driver who deemed moving over for blue flags as unnecessary. Oliver Bearman was also penalised by the stewards for not allowing Isack Hadjar to lap the Haas.
The Racing Bulls duo of Liam Lawson and Arvid Lindblad also caught the ire of Max Verstappen for a similar incident.
Schumacher slammed drivers for ignoring blue flags and went as far as calling such behaviour as “unsportsmanlike”.
“Every driver knows what it’s all about,” Schumacher added.
“You have your engineer, you ask questions and also look in the mirror. If he tells me he can’t look in the mirror when he’s driving, then he’s overwhelmed and has to stop.
“But that’s really unsportsmanlike!”
Heading into the month-long summer break, the blue flags fiasco after Hungary will surely be a hotly debated topic within the paddock.
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