The Bulgarian pilot Nikola Tsolov was sanctioned by the stewards of the International Automobile Federation (FIA) after the end of the race in Barcelona and lost his place on the podium. Due to the imposed penalty, the Campos Racing driver was moved from third to fourth position in the final standings, BTA reports.
The reason for the sanction was a maneuver against one of his main competitors for the title - the Italian Gabriele Mini. According to the stewards, Tsolov completed the overtaking outside the limits of the track during the battle between the two five laps before the final.
After examining the case, the FIA published the positions of the two pilots. Tsolov explained that with the faster “soft” tires attacked the Mini in turn ten and believed that the maneuver was completely completed within the rules.
„The driver of car number 6 (Tsolov) explained that he was on soft tires and attacked car number 9 (Mini) in turn ten, where car number 9 went off the outside. Due to the different strategies, it was simply an overtaking in the exit from 10 and the entry into 11. He said that he did not leave the track and the overtaking had already been done“, the FIA stated.
For his part, Gabriele Mini stated that he left enough space for his rival, but according to him, the Bulgarian driver gained an advantage by using the area outside the track.
“The driver with car number 9 stated that he defended his position, but left enough space for his rival in turn number 11. He also added that when he exited, car number 6 gained an advantage because he completed the maneuver outside the track“, the decision also says.
After analyzing the situation, the stewards imposed a five-second penalty on the Bulgarian. Thus, Tsolov drops to fourth place in the final standings, while Mini climbs onto the podium in third place.
The sanction also affects the general standings, where after the racing weekend in Barcelona, Gabriele Mini already has a five-point lead over Nikola Tsolov in the battle for the title.