It's official. Max Verstappen failed to avoid the penalty. The Dutchman will pay a place on the grid for the Qatar Grand Prix after the investigation of the FIA for having hindered George Russell in Q3. The decision came after the stewards heard the protagonists. Deciding to combine a sanction for the Dutch driver, who thus climbs from pole to second position. George Russell therefore finds himself on the front row. Ahead of Verstappen and Lando Norris, third.
The incriminating incident occurred during the preparation lap in Q3, when Verstappen, going slowly, hindered Russell's Mercedes in the fast corners of the Lusail circuit. Russell was forced to swerve sharply to avoid contact, complaining over the radio of a dangerous maneuver.
The case
After reviewing the data and listening to both sides, the FIA found Verstappen guilty of creating a dangerous situation, handing him a three-place penalty. However, considering Russell was not engaged in a flying lap, the penalty was reduced to just one place.
“Car 1 was following a different preparation strategy than Car 63. Car 1 was well outside the delta and the driver of Car 1 explained that he let Cars 4 and 14 pass. The driver of Car 63 stated that he let Car 4 pass. The driver of Car 63 stated that he respected the delta and did not expect Car 1 to be on the racing line. He stated that if a car is going slowly through a high speed corner, it should not be on the racing line.
The FIA decision
The Stewards consider this case to be complicated as it is clear that Car 1 did not comply with the Race Director's notes and was driving, in our opinion, unnecessarily slowly given the circumstances.
It was obvious that the driver of car 1 was trying to cool his tyres. He could also see car 63 approaching, as he looked in his mirror several times while on the short straight between turns 11 and 12.
Unusually, the incident occurred when neither car was on a push lap. Had car 63 been on a push lap, the penalty would likely have been the usual 3-place grid penalty. However, to mitigate the penalty, it was clear that the driver of car 63 had a clear view of car 1 and that neither car was on a push lap.”
Grid implications
The penalty thus changes the top positions. George Russell will start from pole position, alongside Verstappen, while Lando Norris maintains third place. Oscar Piastri completes the second row, with the Ferraris of Sainz and Leclerc following.
It remains to be seen how Verstappen will handle a race that now promises to be even more close, with a start from second place and the need to recover lost ground.
