'If it continues like this the championship will be decided by a suspension'

Gasly started this year with a clean sheet but earned as many as 10 penalty points over the course of the season. Twelve points will result in a one-race suspension. Should this happen, Gasly will be the first driver since the introduction of the penalty point system to actually be excluded from a race. Gasly will also have to drive carefully for a while: his first penalty points will not expire until May 2023.

Gasly has expressed his frustration at the many penalty points several times and does so again. "I don't see myself as a dangerous driver," Gasly said, referring to the reason the penalty points were originally applied. "I got most of my penalty points for procedural errors. I hope we can rethink the system, because if this continues I am not the only one who will be in trouble. I hope the FIA thinks of a solution to make it fairer for everyone."

Disaster scenario looms according to Gasly

When the current penalty point system was introduced in 2014, the season had 19 races, but things are different these days. With 24 races and six sprint races on the 2023 calendar, there are significantly more times when drivers can bring in penalty points. For Gasly, that opens the doors for a disaster scenario: "The last thing we want is for four or five drivers to be suspended or for the championship to be decided without any of the key players being able to drive. If we continue with the current system, sooner or later we will encounter this kind of problem."