Team Principal Monisha Kaltenborn was surprised that the Marcus Ericsson’s first lap incident with Kevin Magnussen did not result in a penalty for the Danish driver, feeling that the incident was clearly the fault of the Haas F1 Team racer.
Magnussen appeared to tip the Sauber F1 Team racer into a spin and into the gravel trap on the opening lap at turn three, but stewards deemed no action was required, something that baffled Kaltenborn.
“Marcus’ race was ruined after the start in turn 3,” said Kaltenborn. “The situation there was clear-cut, so it is incomprehensible why the stewards didn’t react to the incident.”
Ericsson left Albert Park in a disappointed frame of mind after ultimately retiring from the Australian Grand Prix due to a hydraulic issue on his C36-Ferrari.
He had already fallen down the order after that first lap clash with Magnussen, but despite getting out of the gravel, he fell out of the race with mechanical gremlims after just twenty-one laps.
“A very disappointing race for me,” said Ericsson. “I did not have a good start, but then I was fighting hard in the first couple of corners on lap one. Unfortunately, in turn 3 I got hit from behind, which caused lots of damage on the right side as well as to the floor of the car.
“From that moment on, it was all about finishing the race. Later on, I had to stop the car on track due to a hydraulic failure caused by the incident on lap one.”
