One can say that the Jeddah circuit race was not as chaotic as the post-race shenanigans, and they won’t be wrong. Fernando Alonso successfully gained a podium in the 2024 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix after starting in 2nd place on the grid in the Sunday Race. Troubles for the driver had started right at the grid – a five-second time penalty for an incorrect starting position at the beginning of the race, which Alonso served in the pits post-start.
On the last lap of the race, Aston Martin asked the stewards to review the 5-second penalty served by the driver, which states that no mechanic should be working on the car during the time penalty was being fulfiled, which became a sticking point in Alonso’s 3rd position on the Jeddah circuit. A 10-second penalty was given to him, a late ruling from the FIA that claimed he had not served the in-race penalty properly.
Initially, the officials did stand by the Aston driver, saying his car had been idle for the 5-second duration before any mechanic touched it, but later decided to go ahead with the 10-second penalty, which dropped Alonso from the podium position to the 4th place, moving Russel up the ladder.
The Aston Martin team later questioned this decision, saying the rules for a penalty not being served right were, at best, ambiguous. They claimed that the rules said nothing about a mechanic touching the car during the period but only restricted them from working on it.
To support their concern, Aston Martin showed them past examples of penalties where contact was made with the respective cars, but no penalty was handed out to the team later. This vagueness of the rule prompted the stewards to look into the very core of the issue and return with a clear stand stating what is and is not allowed. They promised to come up with the revised rule before the Australian Grand Prix scheduled for next week.
The officials issued a statement that clearly said that the investigation is to be addressed at the next Sporting Advisory Committee to take place on Thursday, 23 March, and a clarification was issued ahead of the 2024 FIA Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix.
Finally, the disagreement about whether Aston Martin’s car did break the rules or not, and therefore Alonso deserved the punishment, essentially comes down to what constitutes “worked on”. When Alonso arrived in the pit to serve his penalty, the rear jack was pushed before the 5-seconds ended. But he did not raise it, which should mean that it was not worked on, just touched by the mechanic.
Concerns also point out the penalties served by Ocon and Alonso for not starting on the correct grid box and the driver’s ability to see the boxes made on the track. Furthermore, the team pointed out that the formal investigation of Alonso for the 10-second penalty was finally discussed in the last lap, despite the clean chit given at the time.
After all the debate between Aston Martin and the FIA, the decision ruled in Alonso’s favour, putting him back in the 3rd position, making this his second podium of the 2024 season.
