Eric Scalvini “mortified” after drive through penalty

Eric Scalvini received a drive through penalty in the first race at Monza. The MM Motorsport driver was in second before the penalty and, despite a very strong pace which earned him the fastest lap of the race, the Honda driver went no further than fifth in his charge back through the field.

The Lombardy-based driver was shocked and mortified after the race, as he believes the penalty for a contact right after the start was too harsh on him.

“I had a great start, it was perfect”, said Scalvini to TouringCarTimes. “I got between the two cars ahead of me and I had a small contact with one of them. I was at 65 km/h so it couldn’t have been a huge touch, but I was still penalised for that with a drive through. I am mortified because I don’t think this is a dangerous manoeuvre. I’ve been racing for eight years, (the stewards) know who I am and the way I see racing, so had I made a mistake I would have apologised, but believe me, this isn’t the case.”

Scalvini says he has already put the incident behind him, using the episode as a motivation to do even better in the second race of the weekend.

“I am disappointed, but I will use this as an extra motivation for the second race. I’m starting from fourth and I am satisfied with my race pace. I did the fastest lap in Race 1, so I am confident. Winning is always the goal, so hopefully I will be able to fight for it.”

Scalvini also explained why he struggled in qualifying but looked much better during the race, showing a very strong pace after the drive through penalty.

“During qualifying it was difficult to get the lap together due to the weight, but I think we are strong in race pace. It’s also a trait of my driving style, I am consistent and the car has a good setup, we are going to be quite strong.”

The Honda driver is not concerned over the tyres, despite Opel’s Kevin Giacon having a tyre exploded at the first chicane.

“We “listen” to the tyres a lot, they give us very good feedback and I’m not concerned over the tyres. I believe we are doing a good job, so it’s about getting it together for tomorrow.”

The second race at Monza will start at 16:25.