Verstappen “had to be penalised” but Colapinto call was “harsh”

Williams team principal James Vowles says he was “frustrated” by the penalty handed to Franco Colapinto at the end of the Mexican Grand Prix.

Colapinto clashed with fellow rookie Liam Lawson while battling over 12th place with under ten laps remaining in last weekend’s race.

The Williams driver attempted to pass the RB around the outside of the first corner, then was pushed wide by Lawson. As they took the left-hander at turn two, Lawson clipped the rear of the Williams, damaging his front wing. Colapinto was later handed a 10-second penalty by the stewards after the race for causing the collision, but this did not change his finishing position.

It was one of several collisions and incidents over the last two weeks of racing throughout the field that has placed a spotlight on the rules of racing and the stewards’ interpretation of the FIA’s guidelines. Most significantly, championship leader Max Verstappen was handed two ten second penalties for forcing Lando Norris off the circuit twice in half a lap while attempting to keep the McLaren behind him.

Vowles said the issue of driver penalties is “a very difficult subject with a lot of emotion attached to it” and “the stewards are in a very difficult spot.”

“They have to adjudicate whether or not we’re letting drivers race too hard or whether or not as a result of accidents or otherwise or positional changes, the place should be given back,” he said in a video produced by the team.

“We want the drivers to be racing, we don’t want to restrict it such that we’re not on-track fighting each other tooth and nail because that’s what we’re here for. But conversely, there needs to be boundaries by which we’re not simply pushing the other car off the track or causing an accident. And that’s the fine line that stewards adjudicate.

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“My opinion of their response to Verstappen was correct. He had to be penalised for that. The defence was incorrect at that point – you can’t run yourself and another car off the track as a result of things.”

Recently penalty calls regarding Verstappen and Norris have led to a review of F1’s guidelines on overtaking. “I think the correct actions are being taken whereby there’s been an open form discussion with the drivers on the weekend, which will then result, I believe, in a change over the course of the next few races,” Vowles continued. “So that’s a positive direction of travel. We need to make sure we don’t lose the fact that we’re racing each other.”

Despite agreeing with Verstappen’s penalty, Vowles did not feel that Colapinto deserved his ten second penalty and two penalty points for his clash with Lawson later in the race.

“My frustration is that in the case of Franco, I think that was a harsh penalty – especially penalty points on his superlicence – for what I think is just racing hard but fairly,” Vowles explained.

“Lawson ran the car out [wide], there wasn’t really any room on track there for Franco, and Franco just kept the line going into the next corner. It wasn’t an intention to cause an accident. I feel on that particular account, again, it’s a fine line, but on the wrong side of it in the case of what we’ve received as a penalty.”

Williams failed to score for the second time in the last three rounds in Mexico while Alpine, the team behind Williams in the championship, scored a point with Pierre Gasly in tenth. Williams now sit only three points ahead of their rivals heading into the final five rounds.

“It’s disappointing to walk away without points,” Vowles admitted. “And probably more significantly, Alpine scored a point and Haas had a very good weekend, moving themselves ahead in the championship.

“There’s still five races to go and there’s still plenty of opportunity to come.”

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