Max Verstappen is being investigated for allegedly violating the rules governing virtual safety cars near the conclusion of the Brazilian Grand Prix Sprint race.
Due to having to add another engine to his season-long pool, the Dutchman already has a five-place grid penalty for Sunday’s major Grand Prix. And he might be facing even another penalty.
At Saturday’s Sprint climax, the stewards are investigating his attitude to the conclusion of a Virtual Safety Car period. Oscar Piastri, who had just stepped aside to let teammate Lando Norris take the lead, was riding behind him.
When the notification that the Virtual Safety Car period was coming to an end appeared on the last lap, Verstappen drew as close to the back of Piastri’s machine as he could, desperate to pass at least one of the McLarens if he could.
Red Bull needs to move on because of Helmut Marko’s remark on Sergio Perez’s future.
However, until the race resumes, drivers are not allowed to overtake or pull alongside one another when yellow flags are flying. Additionally, during a VSC period, drivers are required to maintain a “delta” lap time; exceeding that time is likewise illegal.
Other than violating VSC regulations, the FIA has not disclosed Verstappen’s specific charges. The triple F1 champion could face a punishment, though, as it has been established that the stewards will investigate the matter.
Christian Horner, his team manager, stated after the Sprint race that he was not overly worried about his driver receiving a penalty for how he handled the VSC period’s conclusion. “Everything that we can see appears to be in order,” he said. We’ll see.
Norris earned two points on his title challenger, bringing the deficit down to 45, while Verstappen finished third behind the two McLarens. However, Horner stated: “I believe that the race pace was respectable, which was the most encouraging thing for us in that race. It was encouraging to pass Charles [Leclerc] after 24 laps of staying on the tail.
If Verstappen is determined to have violated VSC regulations, his most likely punishment would be a five-second penalty. In the Sprint’s final classification, that would put him in fourth place, behind Leclerc, therefore Norris would be closer to the Dutchman by one more point.
“I am not proud of it, but we worked well together as a team to get it, so I thank Oscar,” the British national said of his awarded victory. As a team, we performed admirably; this was the outcome we were hoping for. We had to do what we had to do, but Oscar earned [the win].
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