Windsor disagrees with 'strange' Verstappen penalty: 'Punishment Norris should have come earlier'
Peter Windsor disagrees with the decisions made by the stewards after the crash between Max Verstappen and Lando Norris in the Austrian Grand Prix. Not only did Verstappen not steer to the left, according to the Formula 1 journalist, he also says the FIA should have intervened earlier on Norris' offence.
According to Windsor, it was clear that if Norris wanted to overtake, he should do so on the outside. So the McLaren driver did, but then things went wrong: Verstappen and Norris hit each other. It is commonly claimed that Verstappen deliberately steered to the left, but the F1 analyst and former Williams team manager wants to know nothing of that.
Windsor defends Verstappen: 'He's not steering to the left'
"If you closely study Max's onboard he doesn't actually move to the left at all. What is actually happening is that the track is angled slightly to the left there he keeps absolutely straight on the steering, it looks as if he's moving to the left which is possibly what the stewards are looking at but if you look at his steering angle he doesn't change anything," Windsor states in his analysis on YouTube.
"He keeps in a straight line. I think the real problem is that Lando's carrying the big speed differential because of DRS. All of a sudden he got the speed differential and the track's going slightly to the left," he continued. "Then Max got the penalty for moving the steering to the left, which was all a bit odd."
Windsor calls decision on Verstappen and Norris 'strange'
What Windsor finds strangest of all is that it was only after Verstappen's penalty that it was decided to give Norris five seconds for exceeding track limits, an offence the McLaren driver had committed at an earlier stage.
"If that decision had been published obviously or given out during the course of the race, Max Verstappen would have won the Austrian Grand Prix because he would have just let Lando pass with his five-second penalty and followed in the DRS and finish a few seconds behind him and won the race," Windsor concluded.
This article was written in collaboration with Olly Darcy
It s Windsor versus three or four F1 pundits including ex F1 drivers who said that it was Max s fault....
Yes! Windsor!!!! The stewrds need to read Windsors statement...and take another look at the incident...this is exactly what we were saying even Max said its the way the track was
The crux of it was the FIA became a spectator and were enjoying themselves with the battle that was enfolding instead of being the arbiter of the race. They didn't enforce the penalty on Norris for track limits and then since Norris retired from the race, they gave Max a penalty knowing it wouldn't affect his standing in the race. Game over, FIA can wash their hands and go home thinking they did their job.
Peter...what are you doing???? Stop making all this sense! You'll make your SKY buddies Brundle an Davidson angry, let alone all the Max haters, that were all rocking in their beds in fetal position last night, full of 2021 PTSD... ?
Damn, this coming from Windsor is a welcome surprise. Here's a heli shot of the incident. https://www.instagram.com/reel/C82A7AxuQ5X/?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ== Look at the space and time Norris had to react to Max's slight squeezing. Instead of reacting(like Max did couple of times to avoid dive bombs)he drove straight and collided. Remember you only need one wheel touching the white line to stay within track limits.
The stewards took far to long to give lando his penalty for going of track and lando should got a nother 5 sec forcing driver off track.lando just not got any race craft just keep dive boming .then when crash happend it was lando try do dive bomming .and will lando get penalty like checo for driving car and spreadind carbon all over the racing line
Finally, some sanity from someone that actually watched the onboard. Max getting a penalty was illogical. Then again, we're used to stewards being biased towards british drivers.
Oh don't say that, we have a member on here that swears Max is the only driver on the grid that gets some slack from stewards.
Well, I slightly disagree with Windsor on not steering. Max does make a slight steering movement to the left, but it was also to open up for the corner and not to squeeze Lando. If you watch the on board, it seems like Max is taken off guard by the fact that Lando it that for along side him. Still, I think Max was at fault and can understand why he get's the penalty.
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