Perez dismisses F1 penalty solution: 'No steward would want the job'

Sergio Perez has waved away the idea that F1 could introduce permanent stewards in the wake of drivers and pundits criticising inconsistent decision-making and standards.

In particular, there is growing dissatisfaction surrounding the application of penalties. At the United States Grand Prix, Turn 12 proved difficult for both the drivers and stewards to manage, underlining the present issue.

On a number of occasions, penalties were handed down for overtaking off track, in part on the basis of needing to be ahead at the apex of the corner.

This has prompted a backlash, given the changing nature of penalties race-by-race, and there are increasing calls for stewards to use discretion, as opposed to strictly following the letter of the law.

Lando Norris and Max Verstappen's late-race incident in Austin has garnered considerable attention, due to the drivers' championship picture and the fact it stripped the McLaren driver of a podium finish.

The Woking team lodged a right of review petition in the hope of having Norris' five-second time penalty reassessed.

That, however, was not accepted by the stewards on the grounds it failed to meet the required criteria - a determination McLaren has since disagreed with.

Similarly, George Russell was handed the same punishment for his move on Valtteri Bottas earlier in the race.

To remedy the concerns, the Mercedes driver suggested introducing permanent stewards in order to establish better consistency and ensure everyone is on the same page with the driver guidelines, something team-mate Lewis Hamilton agrees with.

Ultimately, Russell wants to see common-sense thinking applied to rules that may not fit the purpose of a specific incident.

However, Perez does not believe it to be a feasible option, arguing that no steward would want to take on the task.

The 34-year-old also questioned how much of a solution it would be, highlighting that differences of opinion within the stewards room could remain an issue.

"I think with 24 races, there is no steward in the world that will be up for the job, first of all," the Red Bull driver explained to media including RacingNews365.

"And secondly, I think it's just a very difficult one because sometimes at the end of the day, two stewards you have can have a different opinion.

"So you always feel like the decision works against you, [but] what goes around comes around, so it's always very difficult in these things to have the best decisions. I think ultimately it's best not to get in trouble."