Nekten uitspraken rond gele vlag en onverschillige houding Max Verstappen? Of was hij gewoon eerlijk...?

Hij leek de pole-positie voor de Grand Prix van Mexico in de pocket te hebben, maar na de uitspraken van Max Verstappen op vragen van de pers in de FIA F1 persconferentie nam de zaak een andere wending. Verstappen moest zich alsnog melden bij de wedstrijdleiding en de FIA onderzocht daarop nogmaals het incident rond de gele-vlag-situatie. Kort daarna was het bulletin van de FIA te lezen waarin Max drie plaatsen gridstraf kreeg en twee strafpunten op zijn licentie wegens het negeren van de gele vlag en het niet van het gas gaan tijdens de gele vlag-situatie. Ferrari-coureurs Leclerc en Vettel werden gepromoveerd en staan beiden op de eerste startrij. Verstappen kelderde naar P4 achter Lewis Hamilton.

Hieronder de uitspraken van Max Verstappen in de FIA F1 persconferentie, die hem nekten:

Q: (Lawrence Edmondson – ESPN) Max, it looked like you set a fastest final sector despite the accident of Bottas. Can you explain whether you backed off or if you were aware of it, if you saw the yellow flags coming into that corner?
MV: I was aware that Valtteri crashed.
Did you back off?
MV: It didn’t really look like it, did it? No.

Q (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) To all three please. Just to go back to Valtteri’s crash and the yellow flag at the end of Q3. Is it clear among drivers and with the rulemakers what you can get away with, with a yellow flag – and also is it realistic to expect you to back off all that much in qualifying when all that’s on the line?
CL: Yeah, of course, I think it’s clear for everyone that when there’s a yellow flag you need to slow down. On my side, the crash was behind, so I cannot judge that situation but yeah, I think it’s clear for every driver. It’s the basics.
Anything more you’d like to say on this topic Max?
MV: No, I think we all know what a yellow flag means.

Q: (Lawrence Edmondson – ESPN) Why didn’t you back off then, if you saw the yellow?
MV: Well, it doesn’t matter, does it?

Q: Well it might, if the FIA look into it.
MV: Well, then delete my lap. The second. The other lap was fine as well.

Q: Not from a safety perspective? Any concerns? MV: Do we have to go there? To safety? I think we know what we are doing – otherwise we would not be driving an F1 car. It’s qualifying and, yeah, you go for it. But like I said before, if they want to delete the lap, then delete the lap.