McLaren team boss Andrea Stella believes that Kevin Magnussen’s behavior in Miami should be punished with a ban from racing.
The Haas driver was penalized multiple times for his solid defense against Lewis Hamilton during Saturday’s Miami Grand Prix sprint by leaving the track multiple times to gain an advantage.
Andrea Stella calls for Kevin Magnussen to be banned from racing over ‘totally unacceptable’ behavior
The Haas driver was further investigated by the stewards after the sprint for suspected unsportsmanlike conduct at Miami, but as a result the stewards took no further action.
Magnussen admitted after the sprint that his penalty was probably deserved, with a total of 25 seconds added to his race time, and he was subsequently given a penalty of three penalty points on his superlicence by the FIA.
The suspension means he will be banned from racing by no more than four penalty points, but McLaren team principal Stella believes that if he intentionally drives in a way that causes other cars to stay behind, he should receive an immediate ban. ing.
“For me, this case is actually relatively simple, because it’s a case where there was an intentional act in terms of harming another competitor,” Stella explained to the media in Miami. .
“This behavior is perpetuated within the same race and repeated over the same season. How can the penalties accumulate? They should be exponential.
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Lewis Hamilton reacts to Kevin Magnussen’s reaction after ‘stupid tactic’ used in Miami Sprint
“Five plus five plus five doesn’t equal 15. Five plus five plus five equals… Maybe you should spend the weekend at home with your family and reflect on your sportsmanship before coming back.
“And if we see that you’ve been loyal and fair and sportsmanlike to your competitors, you can stay in this business. That’s completely unacceptable.”
McLaren driver Oscar Piastri has considered the implications of a driver accepting a penalty publicly for the benefit of the team, as Nico Hulkenberg has benefited from his teammate’s move in Miami. He added that Magnussen’s comments after the sprint set a “very dangerous precedent”.
“I actually saw his comments after the race and he said he deserved every penalty he got,” Piastri said of Magnussen.
“I think drivers who have been penalized are claiming that they deserve all the penalties, but maybe that is the path they have chosen…this is not for everyone. That’s not a very good precedent.
“I think it’s one thing to take a penalty and say, ‘Well, it was a bit 50-50,’ or ‘good job,’ but it’s another thing to take so many penalties and say, ‘Oh, I don’t deserve all of that.’ I think that’s another thing. It’s just not turned on.
“I think this sets a very dangerous precedent and probably needs to be cracked down a little bit more harshly.”
Read next: FIA explains why Lewis Hamilton avoided punishment for three crashes in Miami
