Carlos Sainz Doesn't Forgive FIA For Australian GP Penalty: "Ruined"

It was a bittersweet day for Carlos Sainz at the Australian Grand Prix as the Spanish driver showed impressive performance and solid pace, but unfortunately, his race ended in tears after he accepted a controversial 5-second penalty from the FIA.

After an unlucky start to the Australian Grand Prix by Charles Leclerc who ended his race early on the first lap, the pressure was on Carlos Sainz to score points for Ferrari. While he showed huge performance, his weekend ended in tears as he accepted a 5-second penalty by the FIA after hitting Fernando Alonso's Aston Martin after a red-flag restart. 

Now, talking after the race, the Spanish driver admits that the penalty won't be forgotten after it "ruined" the effort he'd put into the race before the incident. Despite this, he's trying to look forward to the rest of the season.

"I had a good start and felt confident on the medium tyre but we were unlucky, pitting just before they brought out the first red flag and I dropped down to P11. From there I managed to pull off a good comeback with nice overtakes and solid pace, so for that I’m happy.

"It was a good race overall but the penalty ruined all the effort and I don’t agree with it. The frustration I feel right now will be difficult to digest, but I will try to think only of the positives from today and focus on the next race."

His collision with Fernando Alonso caused the 2-time champion to spin, pushing him to the back of the pack. But after a huge crash between both Alpine drivers, Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon, caused a red flag, the results were reset to that of before the incident, meaning Alonso retained his P3 position. 

Despite this, Sainz still received his penalty, pushing him out of the points. 

Fans were obviously disgusted with this choice by the FIA, and were quick to complain on behalf of the driver. Even Alonso disagreed with the punishment:

"On the contact with Carlos [Sainz] after the restart I’m sure he didn’t mean to do it so I think the penalty for him was quite harsh in the end."