Carlos Sainz Penalized for the Mexican Grand Prix
Spanish driver Carlos Sainz has been penalized with five positions on the starting grid for the Mexican Grand Prix. The penalty is due to an incident that occurred during the United States Grand Prix. Sainz was penalized for a collision with Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s Mercedes. The incident occurred when Sainz was trying to overtake Antonelli on the inside at Turn 15 to gain seventh position. Sainz locked the brakes, causing contact. The Ferrari driver had to abandon the race due to the damage suffered to his car. Antonelli, for his part, fell in the classification, but managed to climb to thirteenth position. According to the Driving Standards Guidelines, the stewards determined that Sainz was responsible for the crash. He was given a 10-second time penalty and two points on his superlicense.
In the statement, it is explained that Sainz expected Antonelli to leave him space at the apex, but Antonelli turned earlier than expected. Sainz locked the brakes when he realized that the collision was inevitable. The stewards determined that Sainz had not earned the right to space at the apex, according to the Driving Standards Guidelines. Therefore, he was deemed primarily at fault for the collision.Car 55 [Sainz] attempted an overtake on the inside of car 12 [Antonelli] at turn 15 and a collision occurred between the two cars at the apex.
Stewards’ statement
