FIA stewards released the reasons for the decisions involving Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz after FP1 of the Formula 1 Hungarian GP. The two drivers were investigated for an incident at turn 12, but only the Spaniard received a warning. Verstappen, in turn, was acquitted, as was Sainz in a second investigation that occurred later in the session.
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The incident happened when Verstappen was starting a fast lap and encountered Sainz on the ideal line. Over the radio, the Red Bull driver complained that the Spaniard blocked him and also braked unexpectedly, forcing him to swerve to avoid a collision. Sainz, on the other hand, explained that his radio had a problem and, therefore, he did not receive the team’s warnings about the Dutchman’s approach.
In the stewards’ analysis, Sainz was on the track line before turn 12 and reduced speed to warm up his brakes, while Verstappen was on a fast lap. Williams reported that the engineer warned several times about the rival’s approach, but the Spaniard’s radio cable had come loose, preventing communication.
Despite accepting this justification, the stewards understood that Sainz should not have performed the brake warming procedure on the ideal line without contact with the team. Thus, they concluded that he impeded Verstappen. As the incident occurred during a practice session and, in the stewards’ assessment, did not put the Red Bull driver at real risk, the penalty was limited to a warning.
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After avoiding contact, Verstappen braked sharply at turn 12 and gestured, showing irritation with the situation. The maneuver led to an investigation for possible erratic driving, but the stewards decided not to apply any sanction. They considered that the Dutchman had to move off the line to avoid Sainz before reducing speed and highlighted that the Williams driver himself stated he was not hindered by his opponent’s reaction. Furthermore, no other competitor was affected.
Sainz was again called by the stewards for a second incident, this time at turn 9. After overtaking Gabriel Bortoleto, the Spaniard significantly reduced his speed, which prompted a new investigation for possible erratic driving.
In his defense, Sainz stated that his fast lap had already been compromised before turn 9 by Bortoleto’s maneuver and that, after taking the corner on the normal line, he simply aborted the attempt. The stewards accepted the explanation and concluded that there was no erratic driving, also closing this investigation without any penalty.
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