Fernando Alonso drove a brilliant race at the 2022 United States Grand Prix in Austin last Sunday. However, his valiant effort of finishing 7th after being sent airborne and into the barriers by Lance Stroll came undone due to a retrospective 30-second penalty handed to him by the FIA.

It’s no secret that the stewards should have black-and-orange flagged the Spaniard (something that requires the driver to pit as soon as possible if they’ve suffered a mechanical issue that’s deemed to be unsafe). But what they chose to do instead is something that has rubbed F1 fans and Alonso the wrong way.

They could’ve asked him to come into the pits to sort his mirror out. Instead, they handed him a post-race penalty that meant he got demoted to 15th, and out of the points.

Alpine though, have appealed the penalty and the result will be out this Thursday. That being said, being the wily old fox that Alonso is, he was quick to bring the matter to the court of public opinion before it reached the FIA’s decision-makers. He said on social media, “It’s one of those rare times in sport that I feel we are all on the same page and share the same opinion towards rules and regulations.”

He concluded his apparent plea on an emotional note. “Therefore, Thursday is an important day for the sport we love so much, as this decision will dictate if we are going in the right direction for the future.”

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That is Alonso’s stance on the way FIA has been dishing out penalties has rubbed F1 fans the wrong way. Fans feel that Alonso is now whistling a new tune because he’s the one affected. Whereas, in the past, he’d categorically had no problems with the FIA’s decisions circa Abu Dhabi, 2021.

Fans angrily react as Fernando Alonso takes a u-turn on the FIA and their decision-making acumen

Alonso was more than happy with the FIA’s penalty system in the past. However, his quick u-turn as soon as he was the one affected caught the attention of F1 fans. Fans took to Twitter to share their reactions and opinions on this latest move by the Spaniard.

The main gripe that the fans seem to have with Alonso was his nonchalance during the whole Hamilton–Verstappen fiasco of 2021. Fans took to the social media platform to point this hypocrisy out.

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Will the FIA overturn Alonso’s penalty?