Steiner to be banned or Haas to be deducted points in wake of Russian GP?
F1 News
- Nicolás Quarles van Ufford
After openly criticising the stewards during and after the Russian Grand Prix, Haas F1 team principal Guenther Steiner could be receiving a ban from the paddock or a hefty fine, or Haas could even receive a points deduction in the worst case.
Kevin Magnussen received a five-second penalty in Sochi for rounding a bollard the wrong way at turn two after running wide, which eventually dropped him from P8 to P9. The Dane called the decision "bulls***" at the time as he explained he couldn't have passed the bollard on the correct side given his speed and trajectory.
After the race, Steiner came on the radio and called the race directors "stupid idiotic stewards", followed by a reportedly heated exchange between the team principal and FIA official Emanuele Pirro when he came to appeal the penalty.
According to Motorsport-Total.com, this could now lead to one of three punishments. The first, and arguably the least impactful punishment, would be a 250,000 Euro fine for Steiner for hurling abuse at the race directors.
The second punishment could be a paddock ban, which would imply he would have to spend one Grand Prix on the sidelines, unable to manage or coach his team during the race at Suzuka.
"Ultimately, we're all here to do our job, be it the officials, the teams, everyone, and there has to be a degree of mutual respect," race director Michael Masi told the same source.
"If something inappropriate was said, there are those responsible for legal issues off the racetrack who can look at it."
The third option of punishments would be a points deduction for Haas in the constructors' championship (this wouldn't affect either Magnussen or Romain Grosjean in the drivers' championship). With Haas already being penultimate in the standings behind Alfa Romeo, a points deduction could be a hammer blow for the American side.