Reacting to the reprimand which has cost him a ten-place grid penalty in Korea, Mark Webber has said the stewards decision in Singapore was comical.

The Australian was reprimanded after the race for the incident in which he hitched a lift with Fernando Alonso after his own car ground to a halt on the final lap after its engine gave up.

Fans and media were delighted by the sight of the Red Bull driver sitting on the side of the Ferrari, bringing back memories of the iconic moment in 1991 when Ayrton Senna cadged a lift with Nigel Mansell at Silverstone.

However, going by the book the officials didn't see it through the same rose-coloured lenses. Deciding that "the driver of car 2 (Webber) went onto the track without the permission of marshals, a breach of Article 30.9 (b) of the FIA Formula One Sporting Regulations, the Australian was handed a reprimand. This, combined with those picked up in Bahrain and Canada automatically invoke the grid penalty for Korea.

Subsequent CCTC footage showed Webber running across the track to wave down a car, and while Alonso stopped to pick up the Australian at least two other cars had to take avoiding action.

The driver of one of those cars, Lewis Hamilton, admitted to being "shocked" to coming around a corner and finding Alonso stopped in the middle of the track, but also said he thought the incident, and the memories it brought back, was "cool".

However, Derek Warwick, the Drivers' Steward in Singapore, and president of the BRDC, was adamant about the punishment.

"It is not health and safety gone mad," he told the Daily Telegraph. "A driver could easily have been hurt.

"I hope we're not seen as killjoys," he continued. "I want Formula One to be entertaining. I want it to be a spectacle. I'm a big fan of MotoGP and I wish we in Formula One could get closer to the drivers like they do in MotoGP.

"We have become a bit sterile in many ways in Formula One. But we cannot put drivers at risk. If it had been done in a safer manner, then it might have been viewed differently but this was potentially very dangerous. You can't have cars parked in the middle of a corner."

Referring to the reprimand and the knock-on effect it will have, he admitted: "We had no other tools in our box other than to forget it, and we didn't think we could just ignore it. The really unfortunate thing was that Mark incurred a grid penalty for Korea but we had to judge this case in isolation. We didn't look at his two previous reprimands when we took our decision."

Taking to Twitter on Tuesday morning, Webber wrote: "For @alo_oficial (Fernando Alonso) and me to receive reprimands for our actions after the race it is comical to say the least. Great moment, and fans loved it.

"And while I'm at it, contrary to reports ,there was no interaction at all with any track officials after we put the fire out."

He then tweeted a whole range of pictures of previous occasions when drivers hitched rides - including one of Warwick sitting on the back of Gerhard Berger's Ferrari.

Rumours that Webber was keen to get back to the pits in order to join pals underneath the podium for the trophy ceremony and subsequent interview with the race winner have yet to be confirmed.

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READERS COMMENTS

1. Posted by gturner38, 25/09/2013 20:28

"It's a very clear rule that you do not go out on track on foot without the permission of the marshals until all cars are in the pits. It's all well and good to say the other drivers should simply slow down and be prepared for an obstacle on track, but this is an obstacle that should n't be there. Alonso stopped in the middle of the circuit and forced Hamilton to go over a curb to avoid him, and that's simply not acceptable. Perhaps we should encourage fans to throw bottles on the track and tell the drivers to just go around. It's unfortunate that Webber got a grid penalty, but he made three mistakes to earn it. Had he not been given the reprimand for ignoring yellow flags and another reprimand for causing a collision, he wouldn't have a penalty. How many minor violations should you be allowed with no repercussions?"

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2. Posted by Skidmarks, 25/09/2013 13:38

"When they did the post-race scrutineering, did Webber have to stay on Alonso's car?"

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3. Posted by C5, 24/09/2013 18:05

""I hope we're not seen as killjoys,".

Well, you are.

This ruling is absurd. Slow down laps are for slowing down, and drivers should be prepared there could any number of obstacles on the track on the slow down lap. So of you can't see what's around the corner, drive slower."

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4. Posted by Ro, 24/09/2013 18:03

"I dont understand it ! It was probably the most exciting thing about the race. But rules are rules."

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5. Posted by Rourke, 24/09/2013 17:01

"Derek Warwick says he wants F1 to be 'Entertaining'-giving Mark a 10 place grid penalty really helps the sport become entertaining,I think not!!!-I know there has to be rules but this is ridiculous,It gave a huge amount of people 'Entertainment' and pleasure to see Fernando's good deed.Thank God for Moto GP!!!"

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6. Posted by nonickname, 24/09/2013 14:37

"Maybe it was a little crazbut it was the slowing down lap so eveyone was way off race speed.
It was probably the highlight of yet another race on a useless circuit watching people only get passed when their tyres gave up.
Roll on the next MotoGP.
Godfrey in Cape Town."

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7. Posted by Simon in Adelaide, 24/09/2013 13:37

"Sorry Mark, you were out of order on this one but must admit the penalty is a little too harsh."

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8. Posted by Maria, 24/09/2013 13:16

"Yeah it definitely was dangerous. I was defending Webber and wanting to have the FIA officials be sacked over night until this video showed up...."

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9. Posted by Hardliner, 24/09/2013 8:03

"Sorry, Webber, you were both wrong on this one, it was a daft place to do it. However, the stewards should have turned a blind eye, because now they look daft too"

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Webber: Stewards decision "comical"

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