Sergio Pérez does not understand his penalty

The decisions of the panel of commissioners during the French Grand Prix will definitely have caused a lot of ink to be spilled. After Daniel Ricciardo's double sanction, accepted by the pilot but who admitted that it was “a shame to be penalized” for his double attack on Lando Norris and Kimi Räikkönen, Sergio Pérez also stepped up to the plate.

The pilot Racing Point had been penalized for going outside the limits of the track at turns 3 and 4 and had gained an advantage after rejoining the track at turn 5. The FIA ​​considered that the Mexican had followed the correct procedure to return to the racing line, but the advantage gained deserved a penalty.

“I don’t understand why I was penalized, enrages Pérez. I have to watch carefully, but I did what I'm supposed to do, which is go around the pins. The rule is that you have to get back on the lane as soon as you pass the pins, which is what I did. I think what they did was wrong, because I followed the rules.

Whether I gained an advantage or not was impossible for me to judge – it was the first lap and there were so many cars everywhere. It's supposed to be slower than the racing line so you don't gain an advantage, but if it's not, it's not my fault.

The penalty really ruined my race. We had the chance to score points today but it ruined everything. »

After three consecutive finishes outside the points, Pérez hoped to break this bad streak, especially since the race pace of the RP19 seemed to suit his driver. “At the moment we are still struggling to qualify and that is where we need to focus our attention to see what we can do better in Austria (this weekend). Hopefully we can get back into the points. »

Discover the full report and analysis of the French Grand Prix, produced by our special correspondents at Le Castellet, in issue 2222 of AUTOhebdo, available this evening in digital version and this Wednesday on newsstands.