Having lost out on his first podium of the season at Brands Hatch, Mercedes’ Gary Paffett has expressed his frustration with the penalty that dropped him from third to sixth in the second Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters race of the year.
Paffett finished the race in third but was subsequently given a post-race five-second penalty for not slowing sufficiently during the yellow flag period whilst Augusto Farfus’ car was removed from the circuit.
The penalty was given to the Brit before the podium ceremony, leaving a bemused Paffett questioning the new-for-2013 penalty system.
“I just don’t understand this penalty,” said Paffett. “I came off the accelerator when the yellow flags were out, but how am I expected to lose half a second inside ten seconds? In a championship race as tight as the DTM, every last point counts.”
Paffett, who expects to be battling for the championship, remains fourth in the championship, nine points adrift of leader Mike Rockenfeller. Paffett was left all the more disappointed after the Brit battled his way on to the podium having started from 11th on the grid.
“I hope that the points we lost today because of this penalty don’t make all the difference at the end of the season,” added Paffett. “Our race pace and strategy were very good and were enough to get us onto the podium here through our own efforts. Let’s hope we can build on that in the next race at Spielberg.”