Verstappen sanctioned, for example

Storm in a teacup. Since last night, the F1 microcosm has been stirred by the possible exclusion of the two championship leaders. In the beginning, Lewis Hamilton’s car failed during the DRS opening test, meaning that it opened too much. This mechanically generates a higher top speed when the device is in operation.

But a second twist appeared when a video of fans was broadcast on social networks showing Max Verstappen touching his rear wing, then his rival’s! Obviously, this was enough for the media machinery (especially Anglo-Saxon) to go wild and cry conspiracy: Max Verstappen would have intentionally damaged his rival’s car! The Dutchman then found himself under investigation by the stewards and also faced exclusion from the session for violating the Park Fermé rule.

Given the critical nature of the issues, the commissioners have decided to sleep on it and resume discussions at 9:30 a.m. (local time). After much analysis, the commissioners have decided that indeed driver No. 33 should not have touched his car or that of his rival but that in no way did it impact the latter’s single-seater, and therefore the action did not lead to the first infraction.

But in order not to set a precedent, the stewards decided to hit the championship leader in the wallet with a fine of 50,000 euros. While the amount may seem exorbitant for the average person, it remains derisory for a driver of Max Verstappen’s caliber, who earns over ten million euros a year…

Now that the decision has been made for the Red Bull driver, the stewards will now turn their attention to the Mercedes case. This time, the penalty should not be financial but rather sport-related. Unless the leaders of the star company can come up with a possible explanation.