Breaking: FIA announce penalty decision after Verstappen-Norris incident

Max Verstappen faced scrutiny after sprint qualifying at the Miami Grand Prix, following an incident during the SQ2 phase that drew the attention of the FIA. While initial complaints arose in SQ1 after a moment with Lando Norris, it was a separate situation that led to the reigning world champion being summoned by the stewards.



Incident Triggers Investigation in SQ2



The Dutch driver appeared to impede Lando Norris during SQ1, prompting a radio complaint from the McLaren driver. But despite this on-track moment, the summons from the FIA focused on Verstappen’s conduct during SQ2.



According to an FIA document, Verstappen and a Red Bull team representative were asked to meet the stewards to address a potential breach of Article 33.4 of the sporting regulations and Article 12.2.1 i) of the international sporting code. The regulation prohibits driving unnecessarily slowly in a manner that could endanger other competitors.



A Similar Situation in Qatar Sets Context



Verstappen previously received a one-place grid penalty at the 2024 Qatar Grand Prix for a similar infraction when he drove slowly on a cool-down lap in front of George Russell. In that case, because neither driver was on a push lap, the stewards issued a more lenient punishment. A more serious infraction, especially during a flying lap, could lead to a three-place penalty.



This precedent meant that Verstappen’s situation in Miami was closely watched, with a potential penalty hanging in the balance.



FIA Explains Their Final Decision



After reviewing video footage, telemetry, and onboard data, the stewards concluded that Verstappen had been approximately six seconds over the required minimum lap time between Safety Car Lines 1 and 2 during one lap of SQ2. However, they also noted that he adhered to the regulations during all other laps.



Telemetry showed he was maintaining a consistent speed throughout the lap with no traffic around him. Red Bull explained that a programming error caused an inaccurate delta time to appear on Verstappen’s display—showing six seconds less than it should have. As a result, Verstappen believed he was meeting the target when he was, in fact, exceeding the minimum time.



The team corrected the error after the first cool-down lap and advised Verstappen accordingly, which he followed for the remainder of the session. The stewards accepted this explanation and stated:




“Whilst there has been a breach of the regulations, VER did not drive ‘unnecessarily slowly’ based on the information he had in the car and did not impede any other cars or create any dangerous situation and therefore determine that a penalty for the driver is not warranted.”




Team Reprimanded, Driver Cleared



Though Verstappen avoided a penalty, Red Bull received an official reprimand for the error. The FIA emphasized that while the circumstances mitigated the breach, a more severe penalty could be issued in similar future cases.
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