Several Formula 1 drivers have expressed their dissatisfaction with the penalty point system and the racing ban imposed on Kevin Magnussen. The Danish driver had to surrender his Haas vehicle to Oliver Bearman last weekend, having accumulated twelve penalty points within a year. His colleagues believe that the FIA should reconsider the rules regarding the punishment of drivers.
“I don’t think anyone is really a fan of the current system,” Alexander Albon told the media in Baku. “I believe the penalty should occur during the race itself.” Drivers can receive a time penalty, a drive-through penalty, or a grid penalty during a Grand Prix. Albon is of the opinion that Kevin Magnussen should have been more severely punished in the past to prevent future violations.
Is it part of racing?
“Looking back at the incidents involving Kevin, he should have been penalized much more severely during a few races,” says Alex Albon. “Now he kept repeating it and it got a bit messy. There have been cases where he actually posed a danger, but many of those incidents were just minor offenses.” Fernando Alonso shares the same opinion. He previously defended Kevin Magnussen by stating that his actions ‘are just part of racing’.
Kevin Magnussen has now served his penalty and is back on the grid in Singapore. And the penalty points on his license? They have all been scrapped. “That’s a bit strange,” concluded Alex Albon. “It’s strange that after a race ban you just get reset and start with a clean slate.” Magnussen, who is probably in his last season in Formula 1, still has seven race weekends to prove himself.
