Max Verstappen has been spared a heavy punishment after being involved in a strange incident at the Hungarian Grand Prix. The reigning world champion is seeking an unlikely victory in Budapest, with McLaren very much the dominant force. He will head into the summer break with a spring in his step if he manages to upset the odds on Sunday.
His weekend got off to an unusual start when he was involved in a bizarre moment in Friday’s second practice session. Verstappen was spotted throwing a small white towel out of his cockpit at Turn Three, prompting an investigation from the stewards. The verdict arrived shortly after the end of the session, with Red Bull being handed a formal warning.
In a statement, the stewards said: “The driver explained that while in the garage, the face towel had slipped from his lap to the side of the seat and the team was unaware that it remained in the cockpit.
“When the driver realised it was there, he moved to the far right of the track and attempted to throw it as far away from the car and the track as possible.
“The stewards determine that the towel had the potential to have become lodged in the footwell and to interfere with the driver’s ability to fully control the car and that, therefore, the car was released in an unsafe condition.
“The stewards consider this case to be distinguishable from a case where a hard (and therefore potentially dangerous) object is left in the cockpit and to be less severe than such a case, hence a warning to the team is imposed.”
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