Formula 1 News: Bearman and Sainz call for FIA consistency

(GMM) Oliver Bearman (pictured) admits he is pressured to change his racing approach as he edges closer to a one-race ban – while Carlos Sainz has welcomed the FIA’s decision to overturn his Zandvoort penalty.

Bearman, the Haas rookie, now has ten penalty points on his super license after his clash with Sainz at Monza, leaving him just two points from an automatic suspension.

“That’s in the back of my mind,” the 20-year-old admitted at Baku.

“I have to be careful in the next four races. If a scene like the one with Carlos happened again, I would be out.”

Bearman accepts responsibility for his tally, but believes some sanctions have been harsh. “I made a very dangerous mistake at Silverstone – I deserved those four points. The rest is debatable,” he said.

He argued that drivers cannot realistically apply every written guideline in the heat of battle. “In that split second, you’re not thinking about the three pages of instructions we got in January.”

Bearman has joined calls for permanent FIA stewards to improve consistency. “Given the size, importance and money in this sport, consistency is very important,” he said. “It would be very helpful to have the same referees every weekend.”

Sainz, meanwhile, has just benefitted from the FIA’s rarely-successful right of review process. After Williams lodged new onboard footage, the Spaniard’s two license points were cancelled.

“For me, this is a breakthrough,” Sainz said. “It shows the mechanism exists for a reason. This case was black and white.”

he also urged F1 to move to permanent stewards. “If I knew the referee was the same at every race, it would be easier to recognise the pattern,” he explained.

“Two permanent and one rotating would be enough. There’s plenty of money in the sport to make it happen.”