We keep talking about last weekend at COTA, one way or another At the end of the first day of free practice, the FIA’s decision regarding McLaren’s appeal would have arrived.
During the event at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodríguez, the Federation ruled on the appeal filed by McLaren concerning the 5-second penalty imposed on their championship-contending driver, Lando Norris. In fact, during the final laps of the United States Grand Prix held last Sunday, the Brit was engaged in a battle against Max Verstappen for a podium position, behind the two drivers from Maranello.
Andrea Stella did not fully agree with the decision made by race control, expressing how a magical moment in motorsport had been ruined and, even more so, how it had prevented McLaren from securing the third place, which would have certainly allowed them to extend their lead over the Milton Keynes Bulls in the Constructors’ Championship. Therefore, the discontent of the papaya team principal translated into an appeal to the FIA, officially filed on Thursday, right before the event in Mexico City.
The FIA statement on the McLaren appeal
In the document prepared by the FIA commissioners, it states that the Woking team filed an appeal claiming an error in the Federation’s previous written decision, which stated that Lando Norris’s car had overtaken Max Verstappen’s car before the apex. However, according to Andrea Stella’s team, it was the opposite, as Woking had evidence supporting their claims.
However, the Federation was not favorable to the new element presented by McLaren and rejected the appeal request, stating that “in this case, the notion that the written Decision was the significant and relevant new element, or that an error in the decision constituted a new element, is not sustainable and is therefore dismissed.”
Photos: McLaren Racing, Fomula 1.