autoevolution
 

Did Verstappen Force Hamilton Off in Brazil? FIA Shockingly Didn’t Check Onboard Footage

When Lewis Hamilton made his first attempt at overtaking Max Verstappen during last weekend’s Brazilian Grand Prix, everyone and their grandmothers gasped as both drivers went off the track midway through Turn 4. Initially, it seemed as though the Red Bull driver might have forced the reigning world champion off, only to have F1 race director Michael Masi say that nothing really happened.
Lewis Hamilton battling Max Verstappen during 2021 Brazilian Grand Prix 6 photos
Photo: LAT Images for Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix Ltd
2021 Brazilian Grand Prix startLewis Hamilton battling Max Verstappen during 2021 Brazilian Grand PrixLewis Hamilton battling Max Verstappen during 2021 Brazilian Grand PrixLewis Hamilton battling Max Verstappen during 2021 Brazilian Grand PrixScreenshot of Turn 4 incident between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton
However, something weird DID happen. As the minutes went by, everyone began to realize that the broadcast hadn’t shown and probably wouldn’t be showing the onboard footage from Verstappen’s car, which would have made everything crystal clear – had we seen the Dutch driver steer towards Hamilton’s Mercedes, that is.

Even more surprising is the fact that Masi didn’t have access to the onboard footage either, and made his decision to not investigate the matter any further based only on the angles that were broadcast to the general public.

“No, it was only the cameras that are broadcast, as I’ve said before, which is basically what we have access to throughout,” he told Autosport following the race.

He will get to see all the other angles, but we’re not sure exactly when or whether it will make any difference, seeing as how Hamilton eventually did get past Verstappen and won the race.

As far as I’m concerned, this can go one of two ways. Max either understeered and drove Hamilton off the track by accident, or he deliberately ran his championship rival off in order to hang onto first place. The latter doesn’t even have to include a high-resolution image of Verstappen pointing his steering wheel towards Hamilton’s car, but rather a lack of input at the appropriate time (not steering away from the Mercedes) could suffice.

Sure, the race is over, and the points have already been attributed to both drivers. But, if that was a deliberate move by the young Dutchman, it would only be fair for the FIA to slap a 10-second penalty on him, at the very least, which would mean moving him from P2 to P3, behind Valtteri Bottas. With just three races left, every single point matters, for both drivers and their teams.

From the outside looking in, it’s painfully difficult to call it one way or the other without onboard footage from the #33 Red Bull. It’s almost as if the video was deliberately withheld. But don’t all F1 cars have onboard cameras, you ask? Why, yes, they do. Multiple ones. It’s in the rule book. We should have seen the appropriate replay immediately after the incident. Again, it’s even more unbelievable that Masi couldn’t see it.

Anyway, unless this gets resolved in the very immediate future, we might as well start calling this whole debacle ‘Replaygate’ – because it really is properly stupefying.

Note Because of stringent F1 content rules, you can only watch the video on their official YouTube page, so just click 'Watch on YouTube' after the pop-up.

If you liked the article, please follow us:  Google News icon Google News Youtube Instagram X (Twitter)
About the author: Sergiu Tudose
Sergiu Tudose profile photo

Sergiu got to experience both American and European car "scenes" at an early age (his father drove a Ford Fiesta XR2 supermini in the 80s). After spending over 15 years at local and international auto publications, he's starting to appreciate comfort behind the wheel more than raw power and acceleration.
Full profile

 

Would you like AUTOEVOLUTION to send you notifications?

You will only receive our top stories