Max Verstappen, no penalty: pole position in Austria remains

Despite the commissioners’ investigation, it does not change Austria’s poleman.

Max Verstappen retains pole position in the Austrian Grand Prix. The Dutch driver had set the fastest time at the Red Bull Ring, ahead of the Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz. However, a maneuver that had hindered Kevin Magnussen’s Haas had put the whole thing in doubt.Meanwhile, the official Formula 1 decision has come and the pole position remains.

“No further action,” indeed reads the FIA document issued several hours after the end of qualifying. It also reads the federation’s reasons, which came after hearing from both Verstappen and Magnussen. The Red Bull driver had claimed that he “saw a single-seater approaching, after crossing the finish line of his flying lap, and then moved to the left side of the track after exiting Turn 1.” In contrast, the Haas colleague’s version was that he was “forced to move to the right to avoid the car” of the world champion. Moreover, this maneuver would have caused him to lose valuable time on his lap.

These considerations did not convince the stewards of Verstappen’s culpability, so he did not receive the five-place grid relegation that some expected. “Based on video (and audio) evidence, the #20 car hit the curb in Turn 1 and this caused a slight change in its acceleration. The consequence was a slightly slower time in the subsequent microsections,” the device reads.