Christian Horner presents dossier of ‘evidence’ to media to argue against Max Verstappen penalties

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner took the unusual step of presenting printed sheets of telemetry to the media to argue against Max Verstappen’s penalties at the Mexico Grand Prix.

Carlos Sainz won a contentious race while Lando Norris closed the gap on Verstappen after another furious battle that cost the reigning three-time champion two penalties and shaved 10 points off Verstappen’s lead in the standings.

Norris went round the outside of Verstappen at turn four and was forced wide before the Red Bull driver left the track at turn eight, with Norris again having to leave the circuit.

The stewards hit Verstappen with two separate 10-second penalties for the two corner incidents, with Norris saying “this guy is dangerous” over the team radio.

Afterwards, Horner brought printed sheets of telemetry to his post-race media session to argue against one of Verstappen’s penalties. He also argued that part of the punishments were carry-over from last week’s incidents with Norris, when many thought Verstappen also deserved a penalty, and that F1 is in danger of being over-policed.

“Obviously, there’s been a reaction to last weekend and I think it’s very important for the drivers, stewards to sit down,” Horner said.

“It used to be a reward of the bravest driver to go around the outside. I think we’re in danger of flipping the overtaking laws upside down. We’re overcomplicating things and when you have to revert to an instruction manual for an overtake ... it’s something that just needs to be tidied up.”

Horner, who said Red Bull would not appeal against the penalties, claimed Norris had carried more speed into turn four and said: “If I show you here on the GPS – this is on the run down to turn four – this is actually Lando versus Lando, and what you can see is that the orange line is Lando’s fastest lap of the grand prix, so the point he is braking for turn four and then obviously executing the corner.

“What you can see, is that on lap whatever it was [10] that’s been the incident with Max, he is 15 kilometres an hour faster, and later on the brakes than his fastest lap of the grand prix. He wouldn’t have made the corner. He would have run off track. You can see from his onboard steering.”

Norris coming out on top in a wheel-to-wheel battle with title rival Verstappen was vindication of his “fair” driving, according to McLaren team principal Andrea Stella.

Stella praised Norris for sticking to his principles in the heat of battle and said McLaren have always backed the way their driver goes about his business.

“Our conversation and internal reviews have always been very clear – Lando we like, we approve and confirm the way you go racing,” Stella said in Mexico City. “It is not for you to go there and try to find justice yourself. You go racing in a fair, sporting way like you do and then there needs to be a third party – that is the stewarding that will say whether some manoeuvres are fair or not.

“Don’t be desperate, you don’t have to prove anything. You go racing fair and square. That is what we want from Lando, that is what Lando wants from himself and I think it is important though that the team confirms that is what we want from you.”

Wolff: Verstappen penalties set precedent for F1

Penalties will change how drivers go racing, according to Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff.

“A driver will always push to the limit and when the rules - the execution of the rules or interpretation of the rules - allow a certain way of racing, then a driver like Max is always going to exploit it,” he said.

“And I think now there has been a new interpretation, execution of those regulations. I think it will change the way everybody races in the future,” added the Austrian. “You won’t see that anymore.”

Wolff said drivers would have to accept the change.

“I believe that you’ve probably got to leave space on the outside of the corner if the car is next to you,” he added.

“Braking late and dragging the other car out of the track whilst also driving off track, I think that’s not allowed anymore.”

Ahead of this weekend’s race, Norris had said he might need to change his driving style to compete with Verstappen and even said he was “not on the level” of the championship leader.

“Lando can look at his own racing, often looking at a half-empty glass in relation to what he could do,” Stella said.

“I always needed to have a conversation with Lando to reassure him, ‘don’t worry, it will be all right’.

“In this sense this is a positive day because it has proven that – I think it is good to race hard but it can’t be resolved on track by the two drivers.

“It needs a third party, the authorities. We are completely happy with the way Lando has been racing before.”