The penalties handed out to Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen for the recent clashes between the two reflect the tight margins when apportioning blame, according to FIA race director Michael Masi. Hamilton was handed a 10 second time penalty in the British Grand Prix for the contact that resulted in Verstappen crashing at Copse, while Verstappen earned a three-place grid drop for the upcoming race in Russia as a result of the contact that eliminated both drivers from Sunday’s Italian Grand Prix. Race officials have the power to issue much more severe sanctions for contact, and Masi said the punishments in these two cases showed how tight the incidents were. “I think one of the things...
Full Story »