Max Verstappen surprised by Oscar Piastri’s penalty: “It’s happened to me a few times”

Max Verstappen said he was surprised that Oscar Piastri was penalized after their incident under the safety car during the British Grand Prix.

A penalty that gets people talking

The Australian driver received a 10-second penalty for braking sharply under the Safety Car. A sanction that cost him the victory, which was ultimately claimed by his teammate and championship rival, Lando Norris.

Oscar Piastri considered this penalty unfair, believing he acted in the same way during previous restarts under the Safety Car. A similar incident had also occurred between Max Verstappen and George Russell, during the Canadian Grand Prix.

The Briton had braked sharply under the Safety Car, forcing the Dutchman to briefly overtake him. Mercedes was not penalized at the time, despite a protest filed by Red Bull.

Questioned after the race at Silverstone, Max Verstappen stated he was surprised by Oscar Piastri’s sudden braking: “That caught me out with the cold tires,” explained the Red Bull driver.

I learned after the race that he had been penalized. This kind of scenario has happened to me several times. I find it strange that Oscar is the first to receive 10 seconds for that.

A complicated race for Max Verstappen

Despite securing pole position on Saturday, Sunday was set to be difficult for the four-time world champion.

Red Bull had opted for a thin rear wing on Max Verstappen’s car, reducing aerodynamic downforce. Result: a sluggish pace and excessive tire degradation.

Shortly after the incident with Oscar Piastri, Max Verstappen briefly lost control of his car and dropped to 11th place, before climbing back to finish fifth, overtaking Lance Stroll at the end of the race.

« I didn’t know what to expect. There was a very delicate balance between the fast and slow turns, » he explained.

« We were degrading the tires too much at the entrance of the corners. And then I had my ‘moment’, which complicated everything. I didn’t have the pace to catch up, which is concerning. We made the right strategic decisions, staying on track as long as possible. »

We finished fifth, and with hindsight, it was the best we could hope for given the circumstances. The rear wing clearly complicated things. But even with more downforce, we couldn’t have fought with McLaren. That’s for sure, he concluded.