Max Verstappen has been summoned by the stewards following an incident with George Russell during the qualifying round in Qatar. Footage appeared to show the Dutch driver obstructing the Brit, even before the two racers had begun their final fast laps. Verstappen is officially accused of driving ‘unnecessarily slowly’ in Q3.
Russell was also immediately asked about the incident after the qualifying round. However, the Brit did not know exactly what had happened at that time. “You tell me, you’re the expert,” Russell told interviewer Jolyon Palmer, who often analyses racing incidents for F1TV. The Mercedes driver did know that he did not come out of the incident unscathed. “I had to go through the gravel, and it felt like the floor was damaged.”
According to Article 33.4 of the Formula 1 sporting regulations, “a car may not drive unnecessarily slowly or irregularly at any time or in a manner that could be considered potentially dangerous to other drivers or other persons”. Verstappen was required to report to the stewards in Qatar at 19:15 UTC.
Austria
Earlier this year, Verstappen was also called to the stewards for a similar offence. This occurred during the qualifying round for the Grand Prix in Austria. The Dutchman avoided a penalty at that time because he did not obstruct another driver.
