Haas claims its right of review request into the results of the United States Grand Prix is about reinstating consistency with track limits rather than gaining points.
Last weekend in Brazil, it was reported and subsequently confirmed that Haas had lodged a request to the FIA to review the 56-lap race at the Circuit of the Americas. It came amid the team’s post-race discovery that several drivers had regularly exceeded track limits at Turn 6 and gone unpunished.
The American team reviewed onboard videos and noted Alex Albon, Sergio Perez, Logan Sargeant and Lance Stroll as the most notorious offenders at that particular corner.
The stewards in Austin will convene in an online hearing on Wednesday with representatives from both Haas and the three rival teams whose drivers are under scrutiny.
Firstly, in line with FIA protocol, they must decide whether Haas have provided a “significant and relevant new element” that wasn’t available at the time of the grand prix.
Providing Haas has satisfied that wording, the stewards will then proceed to a second stage of the review to consider the new evidence and make a conclusive ruling.
Haas boss Guenther Steiner is optimistic it has built a strong case, citing that the side has “clear evidence” of the multiple track limit breaches that prompted its appeal.
“It’s just a review,” he told Autosport. “There’s a regulation in place. I mean, in the end, if the stewards didn’t have the information, obviously they couldn’t take action. I fully understand that.
“But there is information, and now we’ll see what the FIA does, once they get the information. I think they need to take action, because otherwise we make rules and then don’t do anything about it. That’s my opinion.
“Okay, I fully respect if they didn’t see the pictures, how can they rule this for sure? But now we have clear evidence of it.
“We just want to bring the case up, because otherwise we need to change the rules. I’m not a big fan of track limits, to be honest.
“I’m the last one who wants penalties on track limits. But if there’s a rule in place, we need as a sport to respect rules, that is more the principle of it, than the penalty.”
Alexander Albon (THA) Williams Racing FW45. 21.10.2023. Formula 1 World Championship, Rd 19, United States Grand Prix, Austin, Texas, USA, Sprint Day.
Albon was the only driver to receive a five-second time penalty in the US GP for collecting four track limit infringements, proceeding to accumulate six in total.
Both Albon and Williams team-mate Logan Sargeant, who finished ninth and 10th respectively, finished marginally ahead of Nico Hulkenberg in the lead Haas.
However, Steiner has denied that Haas’ review request has been made with the sole intention of demoting other drivers and gaining an advantage for his team.
“I don’t think the penalty will make a difference to us where we are, at the moment,” he added.
“But in the end, we just need to go by the rules, we cannot sometimes apply the rule, and sometimes not. It’s not by choice, a rule is there, and if you need to change the rule, let’s discuss it, if you need to change track limits, discuss it.
“But not if it is written that it is four times you get five seconds and any consequent [offences] you get another five seconds, that’s what we should be doing. Like we did before. It’s not that we’re inventing something new.”
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