BREAKING: Christian Horner Challenges Verstappen PENALTY with Evidence but…read more
BREAKING: Christian Horner Challenges Verstappen PENALTY with Evidence but…read more
Red Bull team boss Christian Horner has questioned the five-second penalty given to Max Verstappen at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, suggesting the decision was unjust and backed by incomplete footage at the time.
Verstappen received the penalty for overtaking McLaren’s Oscar Piastri by using the Turn 1 run-off area at the start of the race in Jeddah. He kept the lead until his pit stop, where serving the penalty dropped him behind Piastri, who went on to win the race and take the championship lead.
Horner later presented onboard footage to the media and stewards, claiming it shows Verstappen had done nothing wrong. However, he admitted the team is unlikely to formally appeal the decision.
“We spoke with the stewards after the race. They’re convinced it was a clear-cut decision,” Horner said. “Even with new footage, it’s unlikely they’ll change their view. We’ll ask them to look again, but a protest probably won’t happen.”
Horner argued Verstappen was clearly ahead at the corner apex and had no room to avoid the run-off. He explained that giving the position back would have put Verstappen at risk from George Russell due to dirty air, and the team believed the move was fair.
“Without the penalty, we would have won. We had the pace, especially in the first stint on mediums,” he said. “We finished just 2.6 seconds behind Oscar despite the five-second loss.”
The stewards ruled that Piastri had a right to space, as his front axle was alongside Verstappen’s car at the corner. They added that Verstappen left the track and kept the advantage without giving the position back. While the typical penalty would be 10 seconds, they reduced it to five due to it being a first-lap incident.
Although frustrated, Horner emphasized Red Bull would move on but called for a review of first-lap racing rules. “Max couldn’t just vanish. Maybe it’s time to rethink these guidelines, especially on Lap 1,” he said.
