Car Slows Down After an Off

When I slide off the track at Monza, which is quite frequent, the car slows right down in 1st gear. Car won't accelerate at all until I've stopped and gone into Reverse.
I can't find any reference or setting to control this and switch it off.
So I was wondering if this is deliberate and how the game works??
I'm just using the basic original game with no mods etc.

It’s a penalty, for perceived track cutting built into the game.