Max Verstappen remains unpunished after the tough duel with Lewis Hamilton at the Formula 1 Grand Prix in Brazil. That was decided by the stewards on Friday after Hamilton’s Mercedes racing team demanded that the maneuver be checked again. In the run-up to the Qatar Grand Prix, this topic is now off the table.
The decisive factor is that, in the opinion of the stewards, Mercedes was unable to provide any significant findings for the renegotiation that go beyond what was already known. So the original decision from the race remains: The maneuver by Red Bull driver Verstappen was not punishable.
At the time of the announcement, Mercedes motorsport boss Toto Wolff and Red Bulls team boss Christian Horner were in a joint press conference, which was sometimes heatedly anyway.
He had “completely expected the result,” said Wolff, “we didn’t think that we would gain anything from it. We wanted to stimulate a discussion, it’s about the principle.”
Wolff: “It is important to clarify the rules”
According to Wolff, the drivers need clarity about how they can defend themselves on the inside lane. In Sao Paulo, Hamilton sat next to Verstappen on the outside and was already slightly ahead. The Dutchman braked later on the inner lane, was thereby carried out of the curve and also pushed Hamilton into the run-off zone.
With the stewards’ decision, the drivers now have a guideline for the remaining races in Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi, Wolff said: “We don’t want the World Cup to be decided by the stewards or before the court of appeal. That’s why it is important to clarify the rules. “
