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Carlos Sainz was handed a 10-place grid penalty by the race stewards in the 2023 F1 Las Vegas GP as he had to take a third Energy Store of the season after his car was destroyed by a loose drain cover on the track. However, Derek Warwick, the race steward at the Las Vegas GP, believes that the penalty was too harsh.
Speaking at the 2023 Autosport Awards, Warwick initially claimed how hard a steward's job is since they have to give penalties even if they do not want to. Even though the penalty to Sainz felt wrong, he and others in the FIA stewards team had to hand it to the Ferrari driver since the rule stated it.
"It's a difficult job for a steward, the same as a referee, and we've got to be impartial, we've got to be strict and we've got to be hard sometimes even when it hurts us. The penalty we had to give Sainz in Vegas, it felt wrong, it was wrong, we worked very hard for it not to happen but they're the rules," Warwick explained.
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During FP1, Sainz's car was hit by the drain pipe cover. The session was red-flagged and eventually canceled as FIA seniors, track marshals, and engineers quickly came to the scene.
Although the Ferrari driver was able to get back on track in the second practice session, he was handed a 10-place grid penalty.
Carlos Sainz was in disbelief after getting penalized at the 2023 F1 Las Vegas GP
The 10-place grid penalty was, of course, a massive shock to Carlos Sainz and Ferrari, as they believed that it was not their fault. The Spaniard was extremely disappointed with the decision made by the stewards.
After he received the penalty, Sainz knew how the rest of the race weekend would pan out.
"Unfortunately, as the session finished the team communicated to me that I was taking a 10-place grid penalty, for something that I have no fault and the team has no fault. This has obviously completely changed my mindset and my opinion on how the weekend is going to go from now on," Sainz was quoted as saying by Racer.
"You can obviously imagine how disappointed and in disbelief with the situation I am, and you will not see me very happy this weekend," he added.
Sainz, who qualified second but had to start the main Grand Prix from 12th, drove a recovery race and ended up in sixth.
