To few in F1’s surprise, Verstappen overstepped in Mexico

MEXICO CITY — There’s a common thread that’s woven into Formula 1‘s ongoing discussions about racing rules: Max Verstappen.

After a week of discussions over how he raced title rival Lando Norris at the U.S. Grand Prix, Verstappen was given a 20-second penalty to serve at the Mexico City Grand Prix on Sunday — won by Carlos Sainz, ahead of Norris and Charles Leclerc — for two different incidents with the McLaren driver.

The first penalty, for forcing Norris off the circuit at Turn 4, was certainly debatable. The stewards deemed near-identical Sergio Pérez incidents with Liam Lawson and Lance Stroll needed no further action, continuing the infuriating theme of inconsistency in decision making from FIA’s maligned stewards. There was no doubt about the second, though.

Verstappen drove off the track at Turn 8 to keep Norris behind him; no attempt to make the corner, just ensuring he emerged ahead. It’s a move out of the Verstappen playbook many in F1 have seen before.

As seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton saw drama unfolding ahead of him on the 11th lap of the race, he had no doubt about who had caused it.

“I could see a group of cars ahead, and I saw a plume of smoke, of dust, and I knew [who] it must have been,” he said after the race. It’s hardly a surprising viewpoint.

The 2021 title fight between Hamilton and Verstappen is legendary and featured three on-track collisions and a number of other flashpoints between the pair. Hamilton’s Mercedes teammate George Russell referenced that title battle in his own media session, saying: “I’ve not seen anything like that since probably Brazil.”

The reference is to Brazil 2021, when Verstappen drove his car off the race track to keep Hamilton behind in a pivotal race in that year’s championship bout. The move went unpunished at the time and is easy to overlook, as Hamilton passed Verstappen cleanly a lap later and went on to win the race, but clearly it has set a precedent. Verstappen delivered a carbon copy on Norris in Mexico City on Sunday.

“This guy is dangerous,” was Norris’ verdict on the radio immediately afterward. “I just had to avoid a crash. It’s the same as last time.”

Speaking after finishing second, Norris echoed what had been implied in Hamilton’s statement to the media: with Verstappen, the playbook is often the same.

“I knew what to expect,” Norris said. “I didn’t want to expect such a thing, because I respect Max a lot as a driver, but I was ready to expect something like…