Jean-Eric Vergne, driver for DS Penske, expressed his strong dissatisfaction with the decision of the stewards to penalize him with a five-second penalty for causing a collision with Nick Cassidy from Jaguar TCS Racing. The French driver, who started in second position, was involved in an intense battle for the lead with Cassidy during the chaotic race. Unfortunately, the contact between the two resulted in more damage for Cassidy, forcing him to pit for repairs and ultimately retire from the race. This penalty caused Vergne to drop to seventh position, which was disappointing considering the impressive performance of the Penske team throughout the weekend.
When asked about his opinion on the fairness of the penalty, Vergne stated: “I am planning to discuss this with the stewards, but I must say it was the most unfair penalty I have ever received in my entire career, including my time in karting.” He also explained the incident in detail, pointing out that several drivers made contact with him during the race, causing damage to his car. Despite this, he emphasized that he had given Cassidy enough space to avoid a more serious collision. In fact, if he hadn’t done so, Cassidy could potentially have hit the wall. Furthermore, Vergne made it clear that he was ahead of Cassidy at the time of the incident.
When asked if the good performance of the car gives him hope for a better result in the next race, Vergne simply replied with a confident “yes.”
