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via Imago

via Imago

The race last night in Jeddah had all elements of entertainment, but the drama continued for a couple of hours after the race as well. That was because the FIA continued to deliberate on the second time penalty handed out to Fernando Alonso. They first confirmed the penalty after the Spaniard celebrated his podium finish. The news served George Russell his first podium for the season. However, the joy soon turned to disappointment when they revoked the penalty, handing P3 back to Alonso. The entire fiasco has left a bad taste in fans’ mouths, with some even urging the ruling body to revisit the Abu Dhabi finale of 2021.

Alonso had a great start to the race as he overtook race leader Sergio Perez in the first corner. However, soon flashed the information on the screen, informing the viewers about stewards noting him for starting from an incorrect position. As the race moved to 2nd lap, they confirmed a 5-second time penalty for the 41-year-old. He once again came under investigation for incorrectly failing to serve the penalty. That became a bone of contention between the FIA and Aston Martin for hours.

FIA’s Fernando Alonso drama reignited the Lewis Hamilton Abu Dhabi debate

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FIA in its report deemed race director Michael Masi’s late decision in the 2021 Abu Dhabi GP a “human error”. However, they refused to overturn the decision and hand over Lewis Hamilton his 8th world championship title. The ruling body’s decision to overturn Alonso’s penalty gave rise to the voices demanding a similar treatment for Hamilton as well.

Have a look at some reactions from Twitter.

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Many slammed FIA for failing to stand their ground and potentially having a bias.

Another fan accused them of caving under pressure as the momentum against them was building online for taking away the P3 position from Alonso.

Some fans posted hilarious memes to sum up the situation.

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Watch This Story: Mercedes React to FIA’s admission of “Human Error” in the Verstappen-Hamilton Scandal

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Do you think FIA was correct in revoking the penalty? Esteban Ocon went through a similar situation in Bahrain, where he too failed to serve the stop-and-go penalty correctly. Should his penalties be revisited as well?