Two penalty points for Perez after Kvyat clash

2017 Monaco Grand Prix

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Sergio Perez has been hit with two penalty points on his superlicense but no grid penalty following his collision with Daniil Kvyat at Monaco.

The Force India driver made a late lunge on the Toro Rosso at Rascasse and collided with Kvyat, ultimately putting the Russian out of the race.

After investigating the incident, the stewards awarded Perez a ten-second post-race time penalty and two penalty points on his super license after finding that he was ‘predominately to blame’ for the collision.

“We touched in the wrong position, but this is Monaco and you have to go for it,” says Perez.

“In the end, we found ourselves in a position we weren’t expecting and with new tyres everyone else ahead of us was struggling really badly. So we just had to go for it and I’m happy we did as having a two second an advantage and not trying it, I would’ve been very disappointed finishing ninth. I apologise to the team, but I’m relaxed in myself that I tried.”

Daniil Kvyat was forced to retire at Casino Square following damage incurred in the collision.

“Unfortunately, Perez just drove into me, trying a very desperate move, and he ruined our race,” says Kvyat. “It’s even more frustrating because I was feeling good in the car, it was just getting better and better and until that moment I was fighting for points, running in P9.

“It’s been a challenging weekend, but it could’ve ended up with a positive outcome if the crash hadn’t happened – every time we were in free air we were very competitive! Let’s hope we have a better end to the race next time out in Canada.”

Perez now has five points on his super license. Any driver who receives 12 points in any 12 month period will be banned from participating in the next grand prix.

2017 Monaco Grand Prix

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    Will Wood
    Will has been a RaceFans contributor since 2012 during which time he has covered F1 test sessions, launch events and interviewed drivers. He mainly...

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    23 comments on “Two penalty points for Perez after Kvyat clash”

    1. petebaldwin (@)
      28th May 2017, 19:05

      If you don’t go for gaps like that at Monaco, you are never going to overtake. If Kvyat hadn’t turned in, we’d all be saying what an amazing overtaking manoeuvre it was.

      1. Indeed, and in many ways it was similar to Bianchi’s famous overtake here. Though it could be said that Perez was too far back on this occasion.

        The effect of the wider cars was definitely felt here this weekend. If you imagine this pass with an extra 10 cm to the wall and an extra 20 cm between the two cars maybe it would’ve been different, or maybe not. I don’t think there was a single overtake this race that didn’t involve contact with cars or barriers.

        1. Ben Rowe (@thegianthogweed)
          28th May 2017, 19:38

          @strontium

          You beat me too it! But it took me some time to write this so I don’t know who will have typed this point first :D

          It also reminds me of Ericsson’s move on Nasr here last year which was pretty much identical to the Bianchi move too. Nasr had been told to allow Ericsson though for over 10 laps. Nasr was just being awkward and refusing. So in the end, Ericsson had a go on Nasr in exactly the same way Bianchi did on Kobyashi and yet Nasr (who had been instructed to let him past) didn’t move over. Ericsson did take them both out which was rather clumsy but I really don’t think he should have got a 3 place grid penalty for the next race like he got was necessary as it only happened because of his team mate refusing team orders.

        2. everyone forgets that Bianchi got a 5 sec time penalty for his “fantastic” (Bully) move on Kobayashi

          1. Possibly because the 5 second time penalty was for starting from the wrong grid position (along with Kobayashi and Chilton – all of them effectively gained a grid position due to failing to account for the gap Maldonado left after his car didn’t start the formation lap). Marussia took the penalty, but they did so under the Safety Car, which they didn’t know at the time wasn’t allowed – so the FIA duly re-issued the penalty, causing Bianchi to lose an extra 5 seconds of time, added post-race. (Without that penalty, or with Marussia handling the penalty correctly, Bianchi wouldn’t have been in a position of needing to overtake Kobayashi in the first place, and we’d probably see it as a straightforward “what was Sergio thinking?!?” situation).

            In effect, Bianchi got a 10-second penalty for that start – 5 seconds in the pits, 5 seconds post-race. There was a possibility of an investigation mooted for the triple-touch pass (Kobayashi was certainly furious about it, and given his car had damage at the end of the race he might have had a point), but the stewards did not consider it penalty-worthy.

        3. (@strontium) then you did not see the start – where Kevin Magnussen with a bold move overtook both Hulkenberg and Peres..Got this link from Reddit..https://streamable.com/pwstc

        4. @strontium I’m inclined to agree, at least with regard to the effects of the cars’ 20 cm extra width (so, 40 cm more car width required due to 2 cars being involved) in making an already-difficult move impossible. Add to that Sergio seemed to start that move from the previous postcode and you have an act that was never going to be added to the short list of successful overtakes at Rasscasse. I’m a Force India fan and even so I can only conclude Sergio was spared a grid penalty due to the stewards despairing of anyone managing a clean move in the latter phases of the race…

      2. Ben Rowe (@thegianthogweed)
        28th May 2017, 19:32

        @petebaldwin

        This is what I think too. But that was a very over optimistic move. There have been so many overtakes in the past here that have been similar but not resulting in any contact. Remember that pass Bianchi did in 2014? Everyone went crazy about how amazing it was. It was quite possibly thanks to Kobyashi that he didn’t retire that race. Kobyashi had no right to allow him past but he pretty much had to or they both would have suffered bad damage. Even Brundle on sky said that 9 times out of 10, that sort of move will have been an accident. I even think the Button/Wehrlein incident may have been avoidable if Wehrlein had gone wider. But he had no right to do this. But if he did, Button could have got away with it.

        Verstappen has got away with loads of this sort of overtaking and people seem amazed by it when it has very often been due to how the other drivers react. I remember in China 2015 I think it was where Verstappen was quite some gap behind Ericsson and he suddenly lunged right down the inside and Ericsson just about managed to get out the way. If It wasn’t for Ericsson’s reaction then, that would have been a crash.

        So with this Perez/Kvyat incident, I think the same. Kvyat could have got out the way, but no drivers should ever have to do that when they are fighting for position. Kvyat was on the racing line and Perez took a big risk that was only going to work if Kvyat was extremely generous (which he had no right to be) It’s not like he was being lapped by Perez.

        1. “But that was a very over optimistic move”

          yup, my man Checo wanted too much this time.

        2. @thegianthogweed, in the case of the Kobayashi-Bianchi move, Bianchi did in fact cause a fair amount of damage to Kobayashi – Kobayashi later complained that Bianchi broke part of his his front right brake duct, as well as damaging his front suspension, with a move where he effectively barged Kobayashi out of the way.

          The fact that both drivers could continue was really more down to luck than skill in that instance, which rather underlines the fact that, most of the time, those sorts of moves are much more likely to backfire badly.

        3. These corners are very tight with the barriers very close. There isn’t much room to go wider unless you want to hit the barriers or come to a stop. Once you’re committed to taking a corner, there is no way out of it.
          The only way for Wehrlein to go wide is if he had decided to let Button past long before Button’s attempt.

    2. I have always thought Bianchi’s ‘amazing’ move on Kobayashi was pure luck, and the last two years have just confirmed that.

    3. Checo penalty points, Button grid places. Similarly overly-optimistic moves. Why the difference?

      1. Button’s move was slightly worse.

        1. Just slightly ;)

      2. Because we don’t know if/when Button will return? (Points expire after 12 months, whereas Alonso will have to take Button’s 3-place grid penalty for him in Canada).

    4. I am a big Perez fan but he was in rare form today. Losing his cool on the radio with the team not to mention he hit Sainz and damaged his front wing. Disappointing display by Perez today.

      1. Agree :…. I guess he starts to feel the pressure of age and still driving a mediocre car thought he made at the end the fastest lap ever in Monaco

      2. Thank goodness that form is rare – I thought I saw steam coming out of his helmet at one point…

    5. did Kyvat not hit Magnussen in the same place last year ? trying to unlap himself?

      1. Ironically, yes.

    6. Cheryl Wolfe (@)
      29th May 2017, 13:16

      What about Hulkenberg on Magnussen in 2014. Fantastic overtake without destroying someone else’s race. Class.

    7. Good!

      He ruined my Fantasy League weekend! >(

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