Marko left stunned by the FIA's decisions: 'Fans don't understand, and neither do we!'

13:14, 13 Jul

Co-author:Kada Sárközi

byNicole Mulder

In his column for Speedweek, Helmut Marko was critical after the ten-second time penalty given to Oscar Piastri during the British GP. According to the Red Bull advisor, this is not the first time a dangerous situation happened behind the safety car, but the stewards lack clarity and consistency in their decisions.

Marko puzzled by Piastri's penalty

"A point of discussion in Silverstone: the ten-second time penalty for Piastri," Marko begins in his column.

"Of course, it's not the first time we've seen such a precarious situation behind the safety car. From that perspective, I find the penalty itself to be fine, only we would like to see a bit more consistency in the steward's decisions."

The top advisor raises this question especially after a similar incident took place in Canada, when George Russell was in front of Verstappen. The Mercedes driver was not punished in Montreal, while Piastri did receive a hefty penalty in Silverstone.

"The fans say: a similar situation with Russell in Canada was not penalised, that of Piastri in England was. They don't understand this - and honestly, neither do we."

Marko doesn't given up on fifth title in a row for Verstappen

Immediately after during the same restart, the Dutchman also spun behind Piastri exiting Stowe, and he eventually crossed the finish line in P5. A week earlier, he retired in Austria after he was hit by Kimi Antonelli. This makes the quest for his fifth world title even more difficult, admits Marko.

Yet the 82-year-old Austrian refuses to give up on the title: "We certainly haven't written off the championship. There are still twelve Grand Prix and four sprint races on the schedule, good for 300 World Championship points from the GPs and 32 from the sprint races."

For the upcoming races, including Spa and Hungary, Red Bull hopes for a step forward. "With further updates for Belgium that should bring us closer to McLaren, we still see the World Championship fight as far from decided," the top advisor concludes.