Verstappen gets reprimand for Norris near-miss but keeps pole
Verstappen and McLaren’s Norris narrowly avoided a collision in a scary moment during the final part of qualifying.
Verstappen nearly lost control of his Red Bull car at the flat-out 130R while on a slow lap and trying to warm his tyres, forcing Norris to take to the grass to avoid him.
Norris said he expected Verstappen to be penalised for what he felt was a “clear” block, while the Dutchman believed Norris “created” the close shave by not being “respectful” enough.
The matter was investigated but after reviewing video and timing evidence, the Suzuka stewards decided to hand Verstappen his first reprimand of the season, citing similar offences in the past.
“The driver of car 1 was aware of car 55 in front and car 4 approaching from behind and decided to accelerate at precisely the same time as car 4 decided to overtake car 1,” the stewards noted.
“Unfortunately, due to lack of tyre temperature on car 1, the driver temporarily lost control of the car causing it to ‘snap’ anti-clockwise.
“The driver of car 4 stated that this was simply an unfortunate incident however it is the driver’s responsibility to at all times maintain control of their car.
“Regarding penalty, all previous breaches of this nature have resulted in a Reprimand hence a similar penalty is imposed in this case.”
Verstappen is in the perfect position to seal a second world title on Sunday, having beaten his nearest rival Charles Leclerc to pole at Suzuka.
Verstappen will become world champion for the second time if he wins the race with the fastest lap, regardless of where Leclerc finishes.
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