FIA handed 'illegally-claimed' verdict after latest Max Verstappen controversy

Today at 11:07 AM

Max Verstappen and Oscar Piastri's battle through the opening chicane at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit brought the subject of racing guidelines, and the FIA's place in enforcing them, back into sharp focus. Driving standards - pertaining to the on-track conduct of the Dutchman, in particular - became a fiercely-contested debate towards the end of last season, but all had remained quiet on that front this term, until the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. The stewards deemed the Red Bull driver to have gained a lasting advantage by taking to the run-off area on the outside of Turn 1 on the first lap and punished him when he did not yield the race lead to Oscar Piastri. A grand prix-defining five-second time penalty was passed down to the four-time F1 drivers' champion, who ultimately finished in second, behind the McLaren. In the immediate aftermath of the incident, there were calls for the FIA to intervene. Advocates wanted the governing body to instruct Red Bull and Verstappen to hand the position back, something that would have prevented the penalty. However, it is the FIA's stance that is does not interfere with on-track action by giving teams orders in such circumstances. Nonetheless, in a poll recently conducted by RacingNews365 , over two-thirds of F1 fans expressed their opinion that the governing body should tell teams to return illegally claimed positions. Do you agree? Let us know what you think in the comments section.