Derek Warwick suspended by the FIA after comments on Verstappen’s penalty
Derek Warwick has been suspended as steward for the Canadian Grand Prix after publicly commenting on the penalty handed down to Max Verstappen in Spain. The former British driver, who had judged the penalty « correct » in an interview, will resume his duties in Austria.
The FIA has suspended Derek Warwick from his duties as a steward for the Canadian Grand Prix, following unauthorized media comments regarding the penalty given to Max Verstappen in Spain. The former British driver, who was supposed to officiate this weekend in Montreal, has been replaced by Enrique Bernoldi from the operations center in Geneva.
Warwick had granted an interview to the Paris Plejmo site where he commented on several topics, including the ten-second penalty given to Verstappen for his collision with George Russell at the Spanish Grand Prix. « Should he have done what he did at turn 5 with George Russell? Absolutely not. Did he receive a penalty for it? Yes », the 70-year-old driver had stated.
« It seems to me that although he dived, he then turned away from George, but the momentum pushed him against George. That’s absolutely wrong and the FIA was right to give him a penalty, he added. Warwick also believed that the sanction was « correct »: « Should it have been more severe? I think they did things right, actually. »
The former driver also criticized Red Bull, stating that if he were in charge of the team, he would change the leadership to help Verstappen’s teammates become more competitive.
The FIA released a statement on Friday evening specifying that Warwick acknowledges his comments were ill-advised in his role as an FIA steward and has apologized. The governing body added that he will resume his duties at the next Austrian Grand Prix.
Winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1992 and former president of the British Racing Drivers’ Club, Derek Warwick is one of the most experienced driver stewards in the discipline.
A precedent with Johnny Herbert
This suspension echoes the case of Johnny Herbert, another experienced commissioner dismissed last January. Herbert had also been sanctioned for public comments deemed incompatible with his role as commissioner. The former driver had notably commented on decisions he himself had made as a member of the panel of commissioners, creating a conflict of interest.
The stewards play a central role in managing Formula 1 races. Every weekend, a panel of four people, always including a former driver, rules on race incidents. Their decisions, according to the regulations, are made independently of the FIA and based solely on the relevant regulations.
