Carlos Sainz left confused and frustrated in the aftermath of FIA’s Dutch GP penalty

Carlos Sainz was left frustrated and visibly confused in the aftermath of his penalty at the Dutch Grand Prix. The 30-year-old, who spoke to the media, appeared to be in disbelief with the FIA’s verdict on his penalty.

The Williams Racing driver was handed a 10-second penalty following an incident with Liam Lawson. The pair had clattered wheels shortly after a safety car restart as Sainz attempted an overtake. Both drivers would suffer a puncture, and Lawson even lost the entirety of a rear tire.

The FIA, in judging the situation, deemed Carlos Sainz the guilty party, handing a heavy penalty. Following the conclusion of the race, Sainz, who had detailed on the radio his desire to visit the stewards to contest the decision of the one, was quizzed if he had visited the stewards as well as if he had a conversation with Lawson.

Responding to the question, the former Scuderia Ferrari driver stated:

“I am planning to talk to both. I would rather do it with some piece of video in front of me. I have seen what I had to see.

“The most confusing part is that the FIA always tells that the doors are open, to go and see the stewards. I just received a message that they would rather not talk to me right now. It is something I don't know where this is coming from. But it's not like I am going to do anything crazy, I just need an explanation.”

The incident involving Lawson and the subsequent penalty for Carlos Sainz witnessed the Williams Racing driver, who had qualified in ninth place, finish the Dutch Grand Prix in 13th.

Williams Racing team principal reacts to Carlos Sainz’s penalty

Williams Racing team principal James Vowles reacted to the penalty handed to Carlos Sainz during the Dutch Grand Prix. The 46-year-old detailed how he felt the incident was largely a racing incident, against a fault of his driver.

The Williams team boss, who spoke via a press release, however, focused on the positive from his team’s overall outing, detailing how the race pace was strong overall.

"Carlos, I'm sorry. It was a strong performance yesterday, strong in the race today. It's a racing incident for me more than anything else, but we'll come here where we talk about it and see what we do going forward. The important part is we have a quick car and we've got some races coming up to suit us, so head down, let's get going," said Vowles.

While the race ended far from what Carlos Sainz would have desired, his teammate, Alex Albon, finished strongly, recording a fifth place at the Zandvoort circuit. The fifth place by the Thai driver remains the joint best finish of the Grove-based outfit through the 2025 season so far.