Jos Verstappen questions FIA stewards' "conflict of interest" as Max Verstappen's 20-second penalty in Mexico courts controversy

Max Verstappen's father Jos Verstappen opined that the FIA should rethink who it appoints as stewards, opining that some display "sympathy for some drivers." He was speaking in the aftermath of his son being given a 20-second penalty at the 2024 Mexican Grand Prix on Sunday. The reigning three-time world champion finished sixth after the two penalties.

The Red Bull driver made an excellent start from P2 as he overtook pole sitter Carlos Sainz heading into Turn 1. However, he was unable to keep the place as the Spanish driver repassed the Dutchman after the safety car restart, which left him vulnerable to his championship rival Lando Norris. Norris made his move at Turn 4 and got ahead of Verstappen but the latter pushed the McLaren driver off onto the grass.

But the McLaren driver came out in front of him and refused to give him the position. Max Verstappen then dive-bombed him at the start of the snake-like esses section, taking both drivers out of the track. For his controversial moves, the Red Bull driver was given two separate 10-second penalties which hampered his chances in the race.

Speaking after the race with De Telegraaf, former F1 driver Jos Verstappen reflected on his son's moves and the penalty, saying,

“Norris may now be thinking even more: ‘I have to be careful [in battle with Verstappen].’ If you look at Sunday’s actions, Max’s second moment may have been a bit too much, but he is letting this get over him. But Max is not going to change his driving style because there were a couple of stewards present now who don’t like him anyway.

"The FIA should take a good look at the staffing of the stewards, who they put there, and whether there is no appearance of a conflict of interest. From former drivers, for example, who have more sympathy for certain drivers or [teams].”

---

"Not my biggest problem of the race" - Max Verstappen on his penalties in the Mexican GP

Red Bull driver Max Verstappen said he was more concerned about the lack of performance in the RB20 than the two 10-second penalties given to him by the race stewards at the 2024 Mexican Grand Prix.

Speaking with F1.com, the 27-year-old said:

“At the end of the day, if you agree with it or not, it doesn’t matter because the penalties are given. That was also honestly not my biggest problem of the race, my biggest problem was that we just had no pace. Just struggling a lot on the tyres, couldn’t really attack, and I couldn’t follow Ferrari and McLaren.”

Max Verstappen finished the race on Sunday in P6 and lost 10 points in his championship lead to Lando Norris. With four races and two sprints to go, the reigning three-time world champion might face more difficulties, in the form of a possible engine penalty in the upcoming weekend at Interlagos.