SOCHI, Russia (Reuters) - Haas team boss Guenther Steiner blasted an 'idiotic' time penalty that cost his Danish driver precious points in Sunday's Russian Grand Prix.
"If we wouldn't have a stupid, idiotic steward, we would be eighth," Steiner told his ninth-placed driver over team radio at the end of the race.
The five-second penalty for braking too late and going off track, supposedly gaining an advantage, was imposed after he had already lost out in a battle for seventh to Racing Point's Sergio Perez.
"That penalty could have meant disaster for us. It was such a harsh penalty, for nothing," the Haas driver told Sky Sports television.
Magnussen said he had lost far more lap time by running wide at the 'nightmare' Turn Two rather than going through the bollards.
"I don't get it. Why would you give me a penalty when I haven't won anything and in fact I've lost a whole lot," he asked.
"I don't think it's fair to give (Lando) Norris that (eighth) position and McLaren those points because he didn't deserve it."
(Writing by Alan Baldwin in London, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
