Max Verstappen’s collision with George Russell at the Spanish Grand Prix has conjured memories of another infamous incident. Back at the 2017 Azerbaijan GP, Sebastian Vettel appeared to initiate deliberate contact with Lewis Hamilton.
Vettel was incensed that Hamilton had, in his eyes, brake-tested him behind the safety car. He then pulled out alongside the Mercedes driver and turned into him.
The stewards handed him a 10-second stop/go penalty, the harshest sanction at their disposal short of a disqualification. And yet, Verstappen only received a 10-second time penalty.
Verstappen slowed down on the run to turn five as if he was about to let Russell through. Red Bull urged him to concede the place after he left the track while defending at turn one.
But as the Mercedes driver tried to sweep past, he banged wheels with Verstappen. The reigning world champion, who dropped from fifth to 10th after the chequered flag, expressed regret on social media on Monday.
David Croft says Max Verstappen avoided ‘deliberate move towards’ George Russell
Speaking on Sky Sports’ ‘F1 Show’ podcast, David Croft shared his theory behind Verstappen’s relatively lenient punishment. It’s worth noting that he did accrue three further penalty points, putting him on the verge of a race ban.
Many F1 fans felt Verstappen got off lightly in Spain, but Croft says he was ‘very clever’. He saw in his onboard footage that the 27-year-old straightened his steering before the contact.
He knew what the ‘end result’ would be, but there was no ‘deliberate move towards’ Russell. That would have informed the stewards’ verdict.
“The thing about the Sebastian Vettel moment in Baku is that Seb turned into Lewis,” Croft explained. “He actually adjusted his steering – behind the safety car remember – and banged wheels with Lewis.
“Max was very clever actually in the way that he hit George. He almost allowed George to hit him by not turning his steering wheel to the left.
“His steering angle is actually dead straight when they make contact. The stewards would have looked at that as well.
“He’s not making a deliberate move towards George, but he’s not getting out of the way of George. The end result is exactly the same.”
Helmut Marko couldn’t defend what he saw in Max Verstappen’s telemetry
Jolyon Palmer declared that Verstappen used his car as a ‘weapon’ in the lap-63 incident. He pointed to a clear ‘stab of the throttle’ after he ‘completely’ lifted off.
Helmut Marko wouldn’t condone Verstappen’s move, acknowledging his ‘misjudgement’ after seeing that burst of acceleration. He said ‘the devil was loose’ as he raged at the instruction from the pit wall.
Gianpiero Lambiase and co. feared that Verstappen would be penalised for leaving the track and gaining an advantage. As it turned out, the stewards saw it as a fair manoeuvre because Russell wasn’t entirely in control.
Verstappen will carry his 11 penalty points for two more races before they start to expire. If he can avoid any transgressions in Canada or Austria, he’ll be down to nine before the British GP.
