Nicholas Latifi has been punished by the stewards following an incident with Zhou Guanyu in the Singapore Grand Prix. On Lap 7 of the race, Zhou tried to make a move on the Williams into Turn 5, using the racing line. However, Latifi turned left and the pair collided, causing both cars to retire from the event. The collision was reviewed by the stewards later on, and it was deemed that Latifi was at fault. As such, the Canadian has been handed a five-place grid penalty to be taken at the next race in Japan, along with receiving two penalty points, which brings his total over a 12-month period to three points. In a document confirming the outcome of the stewards' investigation, it was stated that Latifi's failure to leave one car width to Zhou had resulted in "significant contact between the cars".
Latifi reacts to Zhou incident
Before his punishment was confirmed, Latifi gave his take on what happened and admitted that, in hindsight, he could have left more room for the Alfa Romeo. "From the previous corner I had looked in the mirrors to see where Zhou Guanyu was," Latifi explained. "I didn’t see he was there, so I took my normal approach for the racing line on the following corner. I don't know if he was in a blind spot of the car where the mirror can't pick up. "Unfortunately, he was there and in hindsight I needed to leave more room, but I can only go off what I can see in the mirrors. "The aim was to see the chequered flag and learn from the experience with it being my first race here, however the incident caused suspension damage which forced us to retire the car." It was a tough day overall for Williams at the Marina Bay Street Circuit, with Latifi's teammate Alex Albon also retiring from the Grand Prix.
Zhou admits retirement "annoying" after good pace
Zhou was left disappointed by his DNF in Singapore after feeling that the car had displayed good pace during the weekend. "It's disappointing to finish a race with such a crash, there was not much I could do," the Chinese driver said. "I was side-by-side with Latifi in Turn 4, and he decided to fully close the space and put me into the wall. The damage to the suspension was terminal, he got a penalty for this incident but it's not going to change much for me. "It was not what we wanted, and it's especially annoying as I think we had a decent pace. "We just move on from today and shift our focus to Suzuka: it’s a new chance for us to do well and I am looking forward to racing on that track."
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