Damon Hill , 1996 Formula 1 world champion, has been one of the former drivers who have not hesitated to side with Fernando Alonso in his war against the FIA . He has also recognized that beyond the battle that Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton fought in their fight for the World Cup in Austin, it was Alonso who made him vibrate with his duels against the two Alfa Romeos .
On the controversy that these have generated, Damon Hill began by saying on the F1 Nation podcast: “There is a reality in this, and that is that there is something like the track limits and if you run off the edge of the track … “.
“The cars were being pushed off the track, accelerating and regaining their place . Is that a fair race? That is the debate and that is what we have no answer for right now, that is what happened with Alonso and Raikkonen, and later also with Giovinazzi ”, added the Briton.
Damon Hill took the opportunity to praise Alonso and the spectacle he provided during the United States Grand Prix. “I think Fernando, being Fernando, was testing the limits and I thought it was fantastically entertaining . I think his attack on the inside of Giovinazzi was fantastic and his battle with Raikkonen was fantastic too. I thought it was pure fun, “he concluded.
✅ He is forced to return the position to Raikkonen
✅ Go to Giovinazzi
✅ They force him to return the position to Giovinazzi
✅ Attack Giovinazzi again
✅ And in the end they force Giovinazzi to return the position to himAlonso has THE PLAN 😋 # USADAZNF1 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/bOLQsGfKV6
– DAZN Spain (@DAZN_ES) October 24, 2021
Fernando Alonso’s fight against the FIA
In his fight against the FIA, Fernando Alonso has pointed out Michael Masi directly: “ The level is set by the Clerk of the Course . If a defender touches the ball outside the area, the next game we all do it. The rule is very clear. We have to apply it . If in soccer you touch the ball with your hand inside the area, it is a penalty. There is no clarification of the rule. You have to make the decision and say that it is a penalty. We do not need to modify the norm, we need to apply them when something happens ”, declared the Asturian.
“ The only one that can help us from outside is the FIA . From the point of view of competition and safety, we cannot leave everything on the team’s table, because they always look at everything from the competitive point of view. We need help from the FIA ”, insisted Fernando Alonso .
After the Spaniard once again lashed out at the FIA after the United States Grand Prix, Michael Masi responded as follows: “ I can understand your frustration . I haven’t heard it, but I can understand it. The decision in relation to him and Kimi in Turn 1 was clearly secondary and is something that we are going to talk about in the next drivers’ meeting with all the drivers . In other words, the debate that Damon Hill alluded to will take place.
The ex-drivers and the decisions of the FIA
It should be noted that during Damon Hill’s last years in Formula 1, as well as in Fernando Alonso’s previous stage at the Gran Circo, the Race Director was Charlie Whiting. His sudden death in 2019, before the Australian Grand Prix, promoted Michael Masi from race director of F2 and F3, where he had barely been a year, to Formula 1. It is clear that this does not end to satisfy the ex-pilots. For example, Jos Verstappen called Lewis Hamilton’s penalty after colliding with his son at the British Grand Prix as “ridiculous”. “ You cannot conceive what Hamilton did in that place. I think a ten second penalty is ridiculous . If it had been up to me, I should have been disqualified . Max gives him space and just goes against him. It was impossible to overtake on the inside ”, he said.
