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Four-time Formula 1 world champion Max Verstappen has escaped with an official reprimand and one behavioral penalty point following a collision during Free Practice 1 of the GT World Challenge Europe round at Portimao.
The Dutchman was only a few corners into his first flying lap when he attempted an overtake down the inside of Turn 3 on Ezequiel Perez Companc in the #25 Audi. Running out of room, the two made contact, sending Perez Companc into a spin. The Red Bull driver immediately vented his frustration over team radio following the clash.
Pundits quickly joked that Verstappen is now a "proper GT driver" after successfully spinning out a rival attempting to take the same corner around the outside.
The Stewards' Verdict
Following a thorough review of the incident, the stewards opted against harsher sanctions, handing Verstappen just a warning and one penalty point. Under the regulations, accumulating three penalty points triggers an automatic five-place grid penalty.
"The stewards reviewed video evidence and heard from the drivers of cars #3 and #25," the official panel statement read.
"The driver of Car #25 stated that he was focused on the cars ahead and could not see Car #3 on his right-hand side, describing the situation as an unfortunate racing incident."
"The driver of Car #3 explained that he attempted an overtake expecting his rival to hold the outside line through the corner and was caught off guard when he turned in."
"After a detailed analysis, the stewards concluded that Car #3 caused an avoidable collision at Turn 3 and bears full responsibility for the incident."
Although Verstappen was deemed solely at fault, the stewards took mitigating circumstances into account when determining the penalty.
"The incident occurred on the opening lap of the first practice session, with the train of cars ahead of Car #25 affecting its possible racing line. For this reason, the stewards decided to impose the aforementioned penalty," the statement added.
Verstappen and the #3 crew finished 20th in the opening Portimao practice session, just 0.4 seconds adrift of pace-setter Christopher Haase in the Audi R8.
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