Why does Pérez’s defense against Gasly escape a penalty?
The battle for fifth place at the Portuguese Grand Prix this weekend was marked by Sergio Pérez's dangerous maneuver while defending against Pierre Gasly. However, the Mexican did not receive a penalty. Explanations.
It was the highlight of the end of the Portuguese Grand Prix! The three-way battle between Sergio Pérez, Pierre Gasly, and Carlos Sainz for the final gain of fifth place focused the attention of Formula 1 cameramen in the closing laps.
However, Pérez’s rough defense divided the audience. Some believed that drivers should be allowed to fight, while others cried scandal at the danger of his maneuver. Let’s go over the facts.
The situation
The drivers no longer need to make a pit stop, there are about ten laps remaining. Pérez, having stopped on the first lap following a collision with Verstappen, put on soft tires on the 45th lap while his competitors have been on medium tires for about twenty laps.
However, the soft tires degrade extremely quickly on this track and Pérez is in agony at the end of the race, with Gasly and Sainz catching up to him.
On the 64th lap, the Frenchman attempts a first overtake on the inside of the Mexican. But Sergio violently and belatedly closes the door, and the two drivers nearly collide and end their race in the gravel trap.
In the next round, Gasly performs the overtake of the Grand Prix by passing the Mexican on the outside. But the Frenchman did it in two stages, feinting his opponent by making him believe in an inside overtake and then crossing on the outside. An overtake to be shown in driving schools!
TARGET: TOP 5 FINISH
And persistence paid off for @PierreGASLY as he hunted down Checo in the final stages at Portimao#PortugueseGP ? #F1 pic.twitter.com/vihtD4U4G2
— Formula 1 (@F1) October 27, 2020
The opinion of the commissioners
But let’s get back to Pérez. Did the Mexican deserve a penalty?
Not for the commissioners who reprimanded him while explaining their decision.
The stewards heard from the driver of car 11 (Sergio Perez), the driver of car 10 (Pierre Gasly), the team representatives, and reviewed several angles of witness video.
The stewards determined that on lap 64 of the race at the end of the main straight, Perez moved in defense at the same time as Gasly, who was overtaking on the right after drafting Perez on the straight. Gasly’s maneuver was made before the braking zone and was quite reasonable.
As Gasly moved to the right at a significantly higher speed, Perez moved to the right and then continued to move in front of Gasly over a significant portion of the track but did not leave a car’s width on the inside.
A l’issue du Grand Prix du Portugal, @SChecoPerez a reçu une réprimande pour avoir bloqué dangereusement @PierreGASLY. D’après-vous, aurait-il dû être pénalisé plus sévèrement ? #F1 #GPPortugal #f1portugal
— Motors Inside – F1 (@MotorsInside) October 27, 2020
Pérez in Portimão / Grosjean in Silverstone: same fight? Not for the stewards or the drivers.
The commissioners wanted to remind that the drivers themselves gathered to discuss the dangers of these maneuvers, particularly after Romain Grosjean’s actions at the British Grand Prix this year. However, they concluded that Pérez had moved simultaneously and not in reaction to Gasly.
« The commissioners noted that earlier this year, the drivers had discussed these ‘late movements’ and agreed that they are potentially very dangerous. The stewards considered that this movement was on the fastest part of the track but also noted that Perez did not move in reaction but instead moved first or simultaneously. We remind that one defensive move is allowed, but such a move cannot pose a danger to another driver. »
Moreover, it is interesting to note that according to the commissioners, the drivers in their statements considered this maneuver to be on the edge but not dangerous. The commissioners therefore opted for a reprimand.
During the hearing, both drivers agreed that this maneuver was fundamentally legal and was considered to be on the edge. However, the stewards believe that the maneuver was too close to this limit and that Perez had not sufficiently considered the speed differential.
When selecting a penalty, the stewards took into account the
Views of the involved drivers and issued a reprimand (conduct).
It is reminded to the competitors that they have the right to appeal this decision.
A reprimand that doesn’t sit well at Racing Point, implications for the future?
The announcement is having a hard time being accepted in the Racing Point camp, as Pérez received two reprimands this weekend and is now just one reprimand away from a 10-place grid penalty, which is making his boss upset.
« We saw the other incident, reprimand. Now, he has to drive like a saint for the rest of the season. He won’t be able to fight hard because there’s the risk of a reprimand, then we get a ten-place grid penalty. I find that quite severe. One might say this reprimand isn’t severe, but it is. » declared Otmar Szafnauer.
For more details on the Grand Prix itself, we have, among other things, dissected the race of the Mexican, elected “Driver of the Day” by the F1 community, in our traditional top/flop and our opinion is quite different from that of the public!
