P1racenews AI automatic summary:
George Russell believes Fernando Alonso escaping punishment for his role in the former’s Australian Grand Prix crash could have “opened
The incident at the Albert Park Circuit saw the Mercedes driver crashing out at Turn 6 on the last lap while pursuing Alonso’s Aston Martin for sixth place. The FIA Stewards penalized Alonso with a 20-second time drop for braking excessively early in comparison to other parts of the race. Russell admitted he was caught off guard behind Alonso during the corner as he was making adjustments to his steering wheel. Although Alonso defended his tactics, Russell believed not penalizing him could have set a risky precedence in F1 and other racing categories. Despite the incident, Russell stated that there are no hard feelings between him and Alonso and they even bumped into each other at a coffee shop. They both acknowledged the competitive nature on the track but also maintain mutual respect off the track.
