Max Verstappen was handed a five-second time penalty during the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, which effectively prevented him from taking a second victory in 2025.
The Dutchman attempted to keep the lead heading into the first corner from Piastri, but the Australian got a much better start and emerged ahead.
Verstappen took to the escape road at the second corner to move back in front, just before there was an opening lap Safety Car for a crash between Yuki Tsunoda and Pierre Gasly. This meant there was no opportunity for them to change position, which resulted in the penalty from the stewards.
The Red Bull pit wall was livid about the penalty, while Verstappen chose not to speak to the media about the incident. Team principal Christian Horner later brought illustrations to a media session, which has divided fans on the social media website X.
F1 Fans disagree with Christian Horner on Max Verstappen’s Saudi Arabia GP penalty
Horner showed up at Red Bull’s post-race media session with diagrams to explain Verstappen’s innocence, with an image that shows the Dutchman was ahead of Piastri at the apex of Turn 1.
He felt strongly that Verstappen was far enough alongside Piastri, therefore entitling him to the corner on the first lap.
Fans reacted to this in disagreement, with one commenting: “Verstappen has been doing this for years, come off the brakes to make sure he’s alongside so he can claim he’s been shoved off even though he was never making the corner.”
Another claimed: “So who was supposed to leave room? Both drivers, in my opinion, should be given more room. Max had no room, it’s either crash or go wide.”
One fan felt the photo lacked context: “A photo can show anything with no context the photo doesn’t show the fact that he released the brakes to be ahead, knowing full well he would never make the corner and could then just cry that he was ‘pushed off’ – like Oscar said, he was never making that corner regardless.”
Another fan also agreed that Piastri was entitled to the corner: “All I see is Piastri at the apex and Max way off the racing line.”
Fans also pointed out Verstappen’s tendency to push the rules the limit: “Max games the system by releasing the brakes to barrel into the corner with no intention of making it, only to appear “side by side.” It’s not an honest manoeuvre, used in cases like this where a still frame misrepresents the context.”
Another also said: “Max doesn’t lift when he does this. He’d never make the corner, so of course he’ll end up being in front. Glad they are cracking down on this tactic.”
Stewards let Max Verstappen off with a less severe penalty
The penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage is a time penalty of at least 10 seconds, according to the stewards.
However, in the case of Verstappen’s first-lap incident with Piastri, they considered “mitigating circumstances,” which included it being a first-lap incident.
This is why Verstappen’s penalty was reduced to five seconds rather than the full 10 seconds, meaning he got off with a slightly more lenient punishment.
Red Bull still feels it did not warrant a penalty, but one unnamed team principal reportedly told them to “let it go” upon seeing the evidence presented by Horner.
The team intends to discuss the penalty with the FIA by providing them with the screenshot evidence, in the hope there is more clarity on how these punishments are decided going forward.
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