Sargeant and Perez’s escalating penalty points in F1 pose a threat, with 8 out of 12 accrued prior to a one-race suspension, reflecting the growing pressure.
Logan Sargeant stated that the two penalty points he received on his superlicense in Shanghai for an illegal overtake were “extremely frustrating.”
The Williams driver was penalized 10 seconds after the Chinese Grand Prix for illegally overtaking Nico Hulkenberg while the safety car was deployed.
Following an investigation, the stewards determined that Hülkenberg crossed safety car line 2 as he exited the pit lane a fraction of a second before Sargeant, meaning the Williams driver should have yielded his position to the Haas driver. In addition to the time penalty, the stewards also imposed two penalty points on Sargeant’s superlicense, bringing him to a total of eight, just four away from an automatic one-race suspension.
Speaking ahead of this weekend’s Miami Grand Prix, Sargeant’s home race, he expressed his dissatisfaction.
“My penalty was extremely frustrating. I think receiving a penalty is one thing, but getting penalty points for what happened felt somewhat like a joke.”
The two penalty points Sargeant received were the same as those given to Lance Stroll for colliding with Daniel Ricciardo’s RB during the same Safety Car period.
“I believe far worse things happen over the weekend, and you just get a reprimand for them. I’ve seen people slow down in front of me during qualifying, nearly causing huge accidents, and nothing happens.”
“But when I cross the finish line at the same time as someone else and you can’t even see it, you get two penalty points. I think that’s not a good direction to go.”
The number of penalty points issued in the first five races of this season has significantly increased compared to last year: 18 have been issued so far, compared to just two in 2023. Red Bull driver Sergio Perez, who like Sargeant is also at eight penalty points, believes the sport needs to reconsider how they are allocated in relation to incidents.
“I’m leading the championship with Logan for penalty points!”
“Time penalties or pit stop penalties already cost you on the track. Adding a few penalty points – given that we now have more races – is something that should definitely be looked at and even revised.”
“With each incident, if you look at all the points each driver gets, there are a lot of things that go beyond the limits. The rule is there, but I hope that in the future, it can be reviewed.”
Sargeant & Perez’s F1 Penalty Points Challenge. Sargeant & Perez’s F1 Penalty Points Challenge
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