Carlos Sainz has risked a big fine and possible suspension from a future F1 race after swearing on Thursday while protesting a fine for being late for national anthem
Carlos Sainz could land in hot water for breaking Formula 1’s strict no-swearing policy after he complained about a penalty for lateness to a national anthem ceremony. The Williams driver was fined around £17,000 for his belated appearance during the Japanese anthem prior to last week’s Suzuka race.
According to the stewards, Sainz cited “discomfort” due to a stomach issue as the reason for his delay, with a doctor confirming the need for medication. Nevertheless, the stewards fined him anyway – an outcome to which Sainz has now issued a strong response.
However, in doing so, he runs the risk of further trouble of the FIA by swearing as part of his answer. The Spaniard said: “I’m the biggest supporter of punctuality… I was the first one to put my hand up and say, ‘I’m late, I’m sorry for that.’
“At the same time, I was five seconds late. For me it’s out of the question that we’re having to pay these fines. I don’t know if I’m going to get another fine for saying this, but s*** happens, you know? It’s the way it is.”
With new, stricter measures in place this year, Sainz’s use of an expletive means he now runs the risk of a £35,000 fine for his explicit outburst. Repeat cursing offences could lead to race bans for drivers.
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Sainz doesn’t just race – as if this season, he is also a director of the Grand Prix Drivers’ Association, which has, in recent times, been wielding its influence to criticise the FIA, F1’s regulatory authority, for its heavy-handed approach to swearing.
No F1 driver has yet fallen foul of those new, stricter punishments, but World Rally Championship driver Adrien Fourmaux learned the hard way that the FIA intends to follow through when he was slapped with an £8,450 fine for his use of the F-word during competition in February.
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That is the standard sort of monetary punishment any driver involved in FIA competition could face if found guilting of using bad language. But in F1, the numbers quadruple meaning a much heavier potential hit to a racer’s pocket.
Many drivers in F1 have sworn during sessions over the radio, but those outbursts have gone unpunished. The stewards confirmed during pre-season testing that leniency would be given to racers for their language when behind the wheel as it would be unfair to punish them for throwaway comments made in the heat of competition.
An FIA representative said as much after Max Verstappen avoided any such punishment for showing his middle finger while driving through the pit lane during testing. “This happened on the field and is therefore different from an official interview setting,” the spokesperson for the governing body said.
But Sainz’s use of an expletive did come in an interview setting, placing him at risk of being the first F1 star to be punished for his language under the new rules. At the time of writing, though, the Spaniard is not currently under investigation.
