Teams and drivers using radio communications to push for rivals to get penalties has become a feature of modern Formula 1.
But seldom has it succeeded as spectacularly as it did for Red Bull and Max Verstappen in yesterday’s Qatar Grand Prix.They felt they had been on the receiving end of a rival’s lobbying 24 hours earlier when Verstappen lost his pole position after being penalised for slowing in front of George Russell during qualifying. Verstappen dispensed with the threat from that rival on the first lap of the race and spent the opening stint with Lando Norris breathing down his neck.
So when Verstappen spotted an opportunity to put Norris under pressure, he seized it. Heading towards turn one on the 30th lap, Verstappen backed off when he saw marshals waving double yellow flags and told race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase to check that Norris had done the same. Lambiase had just informed Verstappen that Norris was able to use DRS on that lap, as he lapped Valtteri Bottas’s Sauber:
| Lambiase | Info, I believe Lando has a free shot at DRS. Yep, Lando on DRS this straight. |
| Verstappen | Check if he lifted for the yellow. |
| Verstappen | There was a yellow in the middle of the straight. |
| Lambiase | Yep, there was, we’ll have a look, make sure he lifted. |
| Lambiase | Max if you see Safety Car or VSC you can pit. Otherwise, stay out. |
| Verstappen | Is there still a yellow or not? |
| Verstappen | Yep it’s still yellow. Stay on the racing line. |
“I lifted because I saw the double yellow,” Verstappen explained afterwards. “And I know that, of course, if I wouldn’t have lifted, it would have been investigated straight away. So you’re just on it.
“I asked if he lifted because he had a DRS, I think, from a backmarker at the same time as well. And then, of course, when we came out of turn one, I saw that he was a lot closer. So I just asked the team to check it. It was just a normal question and I know with double yellows, they’re quite strict.”
After reviewing the footage, Red Bull reported back to Verstappen:
| Lambiase | Lando did not lift, Max. |
| Verstappen | Report that, then. |
| Lambiase | Track is clear. And yes, we reported it, Max. Still no reply. |
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A short while afterwards, Lambiase and Verstappen reiterated what had happened:
| Lambiase | Just to be clear that was wide-open throttle, on DRS, to the braking zone at turn one. |
| Verstappen | Yeah there was double waved yellows there on that lap. |
| Lambiase | Roger that. |
During the second Safety Car period, once he had made his pit stop, Verstappen asked for an update about Norris:
| Verstappen | Anything on that yellow flag? Or you can just go flat-out through a yellow? |
| Lambiase | Literally just speaking about it now, Max. Stand by. |
On lap 44, Lambiase informed Verstappen that Norris had been penalised. Verstappen did not respond:
| Lambiase | Just information at this stage, Max, but race control now investigating the incident with Lando. |
| Lambiase | Lando has been given a 10-second stop-go penalty, 10-second stop-go penalty, which he needs to serve within two laps. |
| Lambiase | Lando in pit lane, Max. So car behind Leclerc, gap 3.2. |
The penalty dropped Norris out of the points initially, though he later recovered to finish 10th. The championship fight between Verstappen and Norris may have been over before the race began, but Verstappen showed there has been no let-up in their rivalry, much as when Norris made sure race control spotted a potential infringement by Verstappen in Baku.
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2024 Qatar Grand Prix
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fawkes
2nd December 2024, 12:52
The same Max that in the day before said that he had lost all respect for Russell doing exactly the same thing trying to gain some sort of advantage.
He’s learning a thing or two with Piquet Sr. (and Jr.).
Matthijs (@matthijs)
2nd December 2024, 13:08
To be honest, it is not the same. Lobbying over the team radio during the race is not the same as lobbying in a stewards meeting after the quali.
I have seen numerous occasions that Verstappen was hypocritical, but not this time.
Craig
2nd December 2024, 13:30
It ultimately is the same thing as the stewards are the ones who make the call in the end, regardless of how anything relayed to them.
But lets not forget the lengths he and his team have gone to for “lobbying” purposes.
Doh
2nd December 2024, 16:45
Or indeed having their sister team not show to the stewards in what could have resulted in a penalty for the main team
Robbie1
2nd December 2024, 19:19
@doh
You mean: when the sister team is not invited to the stewardsroom they can’t tell their side of the story?
17-9-2023
“An intriguing note at the bottom of the stewards’ decision said that “it was noted that the representative of car 22 chose not to attend the hearing”.
The statement led to speculation that AlphaTauri had skipped the hearing in order to minimise the chances of a driver from sister team Red Bull receiving a penalty.
In fact, the Faenza outfit didn’t receive a formal summons about attending the hearing.”
peter
2nd December 2024, 17:50
How is the same when Max didn’t break a rule but Lando actually did?
baasbas
2nd December 2024, 18:33
@Craig
No it is not the same. Because the point Verstappen made about George is that he acted and said something different then what he said before in interviews about the incident. Verstappens point was about flipping on him.
Fer no.65 (@fer-no65)
2nd December 2024, 12:59
I was surprised Lando was the only one to be investigated as these double yellow rules are open to interpretation (what is slow down and be prepared to stop on the pit straight anyway?). Yuki said a lot of people around him didn’t slow down too…
I hate that ruling anyway, there must be a clear cut directive into slowing down. Drivers often lift ever so slightly and “it’s okay”.
Michael (@freelittlebirds)
2nd December 2024, 13:12
What I don’t understand is that on our screen they kept switching from yellow to green and Stella also pointed out that they were switching them. Then physical flags were hard to see especially if your sight was fixated on something else.
roadrunner (@roadrunner)
2nd December 2024, 13:34
Under that article racefans listed the drivers who received double and single yellows and how they reacted. Apparently Norris was the only driver who did not to lift under double yellows where as Tsunoda was the only driver who lifted under single yellow: https://www.racefans.net/2024/12/01/analysis-was-f1-race-director-right-not-to-neutralise-race-despite-debris-on-track/
Michael (@freelittlebirds)
2nd December 2024, 13:48
@roadrunner so, it’s a matter of being reported by Red Bull then? Are they the unofficial stewards? It does feel that way – anything Max says seems to go in F1 which is why the penalty upset him as the stewards (aka the brick wall) disagreed with him.
We saw it in 2021 when the unofficial race steward, Cristian Horner, told Masi what to do and Wolff clearly wasn’t a steward. If Wolff was officiating, Mercedes would have won.
This will be crazy if Red Bull’s stewardship affects another championship.
roadrunner (@roadrunner)
2nd December 2024, 14:29
I don’t know if they had started to investigate on their own, but they should have and given the severity of the infringement I’m quite confident they already had. Maybe that’s why it took them 15 minutes to apply the penalty. They investigated all drivers that got double yellows and didn’t find anyone else guilty.
I agree that Redbull seem to have a good lobby within race control and/or get away with pushing the rules so a lot of close calls went their way in the past, but this one is as clear as it can be.
Kata
3rd December 2024, 1:55
So, you think that the stewards didn’t notice that Lando was closing in very fast at Verstappen and didn’t investigate why?
But even then, when asked if he knew that Verstappen wanted to check if he did lift of under the double yellows Lando answered that he would have done the same thing as Max did.
Jere (@jerejj)
2nd December 2024, 14:41
@fer-no65 Lando was the only one who didn’t slow for double yellows, which is the key difference.
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
3rd December 2024, 9:24
We did take a look at the data and couldn’t identify anyone else who failed to slow when required as Norris did.
Michael (@freelittlebirds)
2nd December 2024, 13:06
Those flags are not easy to see – I think they need two sets at that distance if the light isn’t working. If you’re looking at something else for a split second or your sight is on the right side, you could miss them especially at the speed you’re going through there.
They should have had some flags on the right side as well.
It’d be quite something if the championship comes down to poor visibility of yellow flags and a badly timed LED.
Matthijs (@matthijs)
2nd December 2024, 13:11
It almost happened in Brazil 2012 when it was debatable whether Vettel had overtaken under yellow or under green. Had the stewards chosen differently, then Alonso and Vettel would both have been a 3 times world champion.
Michael (@freelittlebirds)
2nd December 2024, 13:44
@matthijs that was the one with the spin at the start and the no-resistance overtake on Schumacher at the end to win it.
Alonso was very unlucky. I never imagined it would be his last chance to win a WDC.
It shows us what a joke the sport has become especially after this race and all the freebies that Moanin’ Max is complaining about. I hit the lottery, you guys hate me! I’m not getting penalized, clearly I’m racing cleanly.
Matthijs (@matthijs)
2nd December 2024, 14:37
I don’t want to follow this sentiment. I think that the increased safety is a very big advantage, but it comes with a disadvantage. Say 50 years ago we didn’t need all these silly penalties. Drivers respected each other whilst racing to avoid a potential life threatening risk. Drivers didn’t drive unnescessary slow on the racing line because it was dangerous. Drivers obeyed yellow flags because they could get hurt if they didn’t.
I am sorry, i clicked on ‘report comment’ when I meant to click on ‘reply’. I didn’t mean to report.
Rick Gomez (@rgomez13)
2nd December 2024, 14:06
I wish they would stop airing all the driver’s whining on the radio. Of course the drivers have learned that complaining has an effect. They all sound like 3 year olds when they complain and I am sick of hearing it.
Patrick (@anunaki)
2nd December 2024, 14:36
You’re driving your balls off to get a gap and than it’s gone in a seconds because your opponent didn’t lift under double yellow. Who wouldn’t be complaining.
paulsf1fix
3rd December 2024, 16:43
I have read a few times elsewhere that Verstappen bagged fastest lap during the double yellow flag scenario?
Is there any truth in that?
So he complains about Norris but then it is not investigated that he might have done it too?
SteveP
5th December 2024, 12:51
Overlap of lapped cars giving DRS, yellow flag in one small sub-sector of the track, foot flat on the floor though other sectors…
Yeah, entirely possible he recorded a fastest lap, while having slowed a little in the yellow flag sector.