Former Spanish Steward Finds Fernando Alonso’s Complaint ‘Legitimate’ but Sees No Bias Against His Nation

After picking six penalty points in the three races prior to the Miami GP, Fernando Alonso once again found himself in the midst of a controversy. After a collision with Lewis Hamilton in the Miami GP Sprint, he predicted the Briton wouldn’t get a penalty. As per the 42-year-old, that was because Hamilton wasn’t a Spaniard. An ex-F1 steward from Spain has now rubbished the allegations but with a condition.

Speaking with Marca, Joaquin Verdegay said, “I don’t see that there is a persecution against the Spaniards.” Verdegay, however, sided with Alonso’s concern over the inconsistency observed by the FIA in handing out the penalties.

He added, “Of course, Alonso’s complaints are legitimate. It is possible that the regulations are difficult to interpret, but he does not want everything that happens to be sanctioned. I would not have penalized Alonso in China, or Lewis Hamilton in Miami either.”

; Joaquin Verdegay dismisses claims of anti-Spanish bias in the sport, attributing Fernando Alonso’s penalty complaints to a broader concern about the direction of Formula 1. Verdegay acknowledges the legitimacy of Alonso’s grievances regarding race regulations and penalties… pic.twitter.com/9ZKTAedWcf

— F1 Naija (@f1_naija) May 11, 2024

Fernando Alonso had a spate of unlucky incidents before the Miami GP weekend. In Shanghai, Alonso collided with Carlos Sainz, picking three penalty points.

Before that, the Spaniard picked another three penalty points for ‘dangerous driving’ that caused George Russell to crash in Melbourne. This led to him believing the punishments were a result of FIA stewards profiling him for being Spanish.

While Verdegay did not agree with this assessment, he expressed his concerns with modern F1 racing. The former steward believes the FIA lacks control and is losing direction. He cites the stoppage of races under rain and the safety car debacle at the Miami GP to support his claims.

Fernando Alonso, meanwhile, has had his fair share of run-ins with the FIA in 2024. Before the profiling allegations, the Aston Martin driver had a falling out with the ruling body over the incident in Australia.

When Fernando Alonso left the entire F1 grid divided

In the dying moments of the Australian GP, Fernando Alonso was locked in an epic battle with George Russell. Ahead of the Briton, the Spaniard was defending his P5 position.

As the duo reached Turn 6, Alonso decelerated much earlier than normal. The move threw Russell off who locked up and crashed heavily into the barriers.

After the conclusion of the race, the FIA found Alonso guilty of causing a crash as a result of ‘dangerous driving’. The resultant 20-second penalty demoted him to P8 in the final standings.

Refusing to change his driving style despite the incident, Alonso said, “All those things [slowing down to defend] are completely normal. It was, it is and it will be forever in motorsport.”

Stroll out, Norris out and Alonso at the back because Hamilton turns in there like everybody needs to move when he comes pic.twitter.com/sITyECE02o

— Aston Martin Formula 1 News (@AMF1News) May 4, 2024

On the other side of the fence was George Russell who believed an incident like this going unpenalized would ‘open a can of worms’. Lewis Hamilton and Daniel Ricciardo found the move to be out of the blue as well. However, Lando Norris, Lance Stroll, and Nico Hulkenberg found nothing wrong in Alonso’s sudden maneuver.