The stewards have issued Red Bull driver Sergio Perez with a formal warning following his radio outburst during the Abu Dhabi season finale, directed at those very stewards.
Perez, who was given a five-second time penalty for causing a collision with Lando Norris of McLaren, complained to his engineer via the radio, labeling the officials as “jokes,” clearly showing frustration.
After the race, Perez was called before the stewards and was spared punishment after he offered a “genuine and sincere” apology. However, during his post-race interviews, he also vented about the ruling for a while.
Over team radio: “It’s unbelievable.” This is a joke, but they have been awful this year. That was genuinely humorous.”
Following the race, Canal+ said: “We have commissioners who have never gotten behind the wheel of a Formula One car. The two drivers decide who gets to play the game. I laughed as I accepted the penalty because I had blocked the back wheels. I was baffled as to why Leclerc had given me the position. Apparently, it wasn’t a huge deal after that.”
“The stewards explained to the driver that they had no issue with someone disagreeing with their decisions, however comments that amount to personal insults are a breach of the International Sporting Code.”
“The driver made a genuine and sincere apology to each of the stewards and explained that he made the comments in the heat of the moment and did not consider the fact that they would be broadcast and the impact of that.”
He said he was sorry if his remarks offended anyone or damaged the sport, which was something he had hoped to avoid. The driver has always behaved with the utmost respect during stewards hearings, and the stewards observe that the driver is not known for making remarks of this nature.
He was also reminded that if a driver or team representative asks them to, the stewards are always willing to explain their hoice.
