18/06/2023
NEWS STORY
Pierre Gasly has hit out at Carlos Sainz, describing his actions during qualifying as completely unacceptable.
Though the stewards opted to take no further action over the incident(s) involving Sainz and Alex Albon, the Spaniard was hit with a three-place grid penalty for unnecessarily impeding Pierre Gasly.
The incident meant that the Frenchman failed to make it out of Q1, leaving him 17th on the grid - 15th after the various penalties were applied - and he wasn't happy.
"It's completely unacceptable to be driving the way Carlos did," said the Alpine driver at session end. "It's as simple as that.
"I'm coming at 300km/h, he's sitting 30km/h in the last chicane just focusing on his own lap... but you're not alone on the race track," he continued.
"First of all I could not even close the lap, that would have put us in the top six easily, and second of all it was extremely dangerous and unnecessary, so just absolutely gutted."
Speaking before the stewards made their decision, he said: "I'm sitting here in P17 when we have the pace to be in the top 10, eight, or even six in these conditions, so whatever they decide then, okay, it's going to damage him but it's not going to give us back the qualifying we should have had.
"I was in the opposite situation the other day in Spain but the guys (Verstappen and Sainz) finished P1 and P2, and it didn't impact their Sunday.
Now, I'm sitting here in P17, it's ruined my qualifying, and it impacts my race a lot, it's just unacceptable."