As widely known, both McLarens were disqualified in Las Vegas for a skid block wear violation of less than a millimeter, a decision that delivered a major blow in the standings and allowed Max Verstappen to forcefully re-enter the title fight.

Replying to Andrea Stella’s remarks, which called for more wiggle room before imposing drastic measures like disqualifications, the Mercedes driver argued that there should be no room for interpretation.

“I think it needs to be zero tolerance,” the Brit told GPblog. “He's correct that the punishment is not in line with the crime, but that goes the same with being underweight, like I had two years ago.”

He then added: “Where do you draw the line? Track limits, if you go over by half a centimetre, you're off the track, you haven't gained half a second. I think unfortunately, this needs to be zero tolerance, just to make things simpler.”

Recently, some decisions by the stewards — such as Oscar Piastri’s penalty in Brazil — have sparked plenty of debate in the paddock and even left ripples among the drivers.

According to the Mercedes driver, the only concrete solution that could eliminate, or at least significantly reduce, the controversy would be to have a permanent panel of sporting stewards each weekend, rather than “volunteers wielding such great power in certain roles.”