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Why Verstappen's flip off in the pitlane goes unpunished!
- Ludo van Denderen
It was a remarkable moment during the final day of testing in Bahrain. As Max Verstappen drove his Red Bull Racing RB21 into the pit lane, he briefly showed the middle finger towards Williams' pit box. Was the Red Bull driver breaking the rules in doing so? No, and here's why.
Of course, it was the British who were the first to express their discontent at Verstappen's display of his middle finger. But they apparently did not realise that it was all quite harmless. In the pit box, Verstappen saw his friend Luke Browning and, as a joke, he briefly raised the middle finger to the British Williams driver. So, not a malicious gesture at all, just a joke with a friend.
Why did the FIA let Verstappen go unpunished?
By now, it is well enough known that the FIA is cracking down on - in the eyes of the motorsport federation - inappropriate behaviour. Swearing during an FIA press conferencde now carries a heavy penalty, with even a race ban being an option these days. But in Bahrain, nobody officially reacted against Verstappen's flipping off of Browning.
Perfectly logical, for several reasons. First of all, Verstappen did not say a word. No swearing was uttered by the four-time world champion. Moreover, the Red Bull Racing driver was in the car, and so different rules already apply, as was recently shown in the case with ranting Formula E driver, Dan Ticktum. Also, most importantly; there were no stewards present or active. Since absentees, can't impose penalties, no investigation and therefore, certainly, no punishment for Verstappen.
This article was written in collaboration with Norberto Mujica.
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