Jacques Villeneuve, the 1997 world champion, believes Kevin Magnussen's driving approach would have faced serious consequences "in my time."
Despite some opinions suggesting Sergio Perez might have allowed more room, Magnussen has once again made headlines after seemingly causing a significant and perilous accident during the first lap up the Monaco hill on Sunday.
The collision resulted in a photographer needing hospital treatment due to debris impact, while Magnussen's teammate Nico Hulkenberg, who was also involved, acknowledged that both he and Perez confronted the Danish driver immediately.
"I'm a bit angry. When we got out the car, we said to Kevin, 'Hey, what's going one?'" Hulkenberg revealed. "'That spot is too narrow and too fast to overtake at'."
Curiously, the FIA took no disciplinary measures regarding the incident.
"Another accident in which Magnussen was involved," criticized Red Bull's Dr. Helmut Marko. "You need to carefully review the replays."
"I was surprised how quickly the stewards decided not to look into the incident. Firstly, it was dangerous, and secondly, the damage amounts to two or three million. And this is a serious problem for us with the budget constraints."
Sergio Perez echoed the frustration: "I was disappointed that it was not investigated."
"It was a huge accident and my car is completely destroyed."
Amidst these controversies, Magnussen acknowledges that 2024 has so far been "the most difficult start to a season for me ever."
He is on the verge of receiving an unprecedented race ban due to accumulating penalty points on his super license, and faces the possibility of losing his seat at Haas in 2025.
"In my time, Magnussen would no longer be so aggressive," Jacques Villeneuve told Sport1. "We would have pushed him into the wall and made it clear to him - 'This is not acceptable'."
Ralf Schumacher concurred on Sky Deutschland: "Perez did not expect that, because a normal person does not see any gap there."
