Max Verstappen missed out on a second victory of the season at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, after a first-lap skirmish with Oscar Piastri earned him a penalty from the FIA Stewards.
The Dutchman attempted to keep the lead by going around the outside of Turn 1, but Piastri braked later and claimed the apex, causing the Red Bull driver to take to the escape road.
Verstappen rejoined ahead of Piastri, having kept the lead of the race, and was deemed by the stewards to have left the track and gained an advantage. Alex Brundle felt Verstappen’s penalty was ‘absolutely fair’, given the Dutchman retained the lead in the aftermath.
It is not he first time Verstappen has gamed the rules. Notably in his battles with Lando Norris last year, Verstappen was known for pushing the limits before being given a slap on the wrist by the officials.
Martin Brundle believes Verstappen went over the limit of what is acceptable in Saudi Arabia when discussing it in his Sky Sports column, in an attempt to keep his lead from pole from the Australian.
Martin Brundle says Max Verstappen ‘gambled’ and lost out in Saudi Arabia
Verstappen was given a five-second time penalty by the stewards, but this was reduced from the regular tariff of a 10-second time penalty according to the official FIA Steward’s document.
This is because they applied “mitigating circumstances” because it was the first corner on the first lap, one of the usual procedures for incidents like this.
Even though F1 fans were divided on Verstappen’s penalty, Brundle thinks it was clear that Verstappen broke the rules.
“Nobody games the regulations as well as Max, but for the first time he gambled and lost out,” wrote Brundle.
“Sometimes you can see incidents from different angles and debate the scenario and doubt your first impressions, but accelerating across the run-off area with relatively little steering lock had plainly given Max an unfair advantage and the lead.”
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What the racing guidelines say about Max Verstappen’s incident
The FIA Stewards referred to the Driving Standards Guidelines in their ruling, claiming that Piastri had his “front axle at least alongside the mirror of Verstappen prior to and at the apex of corner one when trying to overtake on the inside.”
In this instance, the FIA Stewards felt Piastri had earned the right to the corner, whereas the guidelines do not dictate that a driver going off track is a viable option to retain the position.
These have been specifically amended this year to address how Verstappen races other cars. This was the first time the new rules had been applied to Verstappen, and this time his approach did not work.
It has shown him that Piastri is a formidable racer, having also clashed with him before at the start of last years Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
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