Should Verstappen have been given bigger penalty for Russell collision?

The Spanish Grand Prix was won by McLaren's Oscar Piastri, who took his 5th triumph of nan play from team-mate Lando Norris.

But nan communicative of nan title was nan arguable bid of events surrounding Max Verstappen successful nan closing laps.

Verstappen appeared to thrust deliberately into George Russell's Mercedes, a fewer laps aft he near nan way while battling for position pinch nan Briton.

Following nan title successful Barcelona, BBC Sport F1 analogous Andrew Benson answers your latest questions.

Everyone will person their ain sentiment connected this.

It was clear aft nan title that galore group successful Formula 1 did not deliberation Verstappen had behaved correctly successful his collision pinch George Russell's Mercedes astatine Turn Five, and he has now admitted that it was "not correct and shouldn't person happened".

Asked whether Verstappen should person had nan achromatic emblem - which disqualifies a driver from nan title - Russell said: "If it was genuinely deliberate, past absolutely. Because you cannot deliberately clang into different driver.

"We're putting our lives connected nan line. We're fortunate nan cars are arsenic safe arsenic they are these days. But we shouldn't return it for granted."

But penalties are astatine nan stewards' discretion and successful this lawsuit they decided to springiness Verstappen a 10-second penalty, a comparatively terrible sanction, and 3 points connected his licence.

Why was this adjudged to beryllium a little superior offence than Russell cutting nan chicane to walk a Williams successful Monaco and not giving nan spot back, for which he sewage a drive-through penalty?

The stewards' verdict did not reside that, and an FIA spokesperson said they could not speak for nan stewards arsenic they are independent.

Those 3 points do put Verstappen 1 distant from a ban. Which intends immoderate transgression successful nan adjacent 2 races successful Canada and Austria, and Verstappen will beryllium forced to miss nan adjacent expansive prix.

After that, immoderate points travel disconnected his licence because they spell beyond their year's expiry date.

With nan use of hindsight, this was 1 of 2 mistakes Red Bull made successful nan Spanish Grand Prix.

After nan stewards launched an enquiry into nan Verstappen-Russell incident successful Turn One, Red Bull decided to bid Verstappen to springiness nan spot back.

Team main Christian Horner said nan determination was based "on caller acquisition and looking astatine caller incidents".

Verstappen had kept 4th position by taking to nan flight roadworthy aft nan 2 had made ray interaction while Russell tried a passing move. He believed he was justified successful keeping nan spot because he felt nan Mercedes driver had barged him disconnected nan track.

Horner said Red Bull had contacted FIA title power and received thing backmost and that, arsenic it had gone to nan stewards, "it looked for each intents and purposes that it was going to beryllium a penalty".

Horner added: "The statement is, was George nether power astatine that constituent successful time? Would he person made nan corner? We've seen truthful galore occasions this twelvemonth wherever penalties person been given.

"You're expecting to get a penalty, truthful that's why it was, 'OK, do you cognize what? We're going to person to springiness this spot up.'"

The stewards' verdict was published immoderate clip aft nan race. It said that Russell had "momentarily mislaid power of nan car and collided" pinch Verstappen, who "did not deliberately time off nan track". As a result, it said, they took nary further action.

In different words, successful their view, Verstappen could person justifiably kept nan place.

There are 2 parts of nan racing guidelines successful play here. To beryllium entitled to beryllium fixed abstraction - ie, to person been judged to person won nan area - nan driver overtaking connected nan wrong has to person his beforehand axle "at slightest alongside nan reflector of nan different car anterior to and astatine nan apex".

Russell seems to person complied pinch this.

But nan car must besides "be driven successful a afloat controlled mode peculiarly from introduction to apex".

This, nan stewards decided, Russell had not. And that was besides Verstappen's opinion.

Horner said: "With hindsight, was it a mistake? Yeah, but I deliberation that's wherever it would beryllium nice, arsenic nan referee, arsenic a title director, to either say, 'Play on,' aliases 'you request to springiness it back.' It's very difficult for nan team, subjectively, to effort and make that call, because you're going connected humanities precedents."

The 2nd determination Red Bull sewage wrong, Horner admitted, was nan determination to pit Verstappen for caller difficult tyres nether nan information car, 1 that Verstappen instantly questioned vociferously erstwhile he was backmost connected track.

Horner acknowledged they should person near him retired connected his soft tyres. "He would person sewage passed by nan 2 McLarens. Would he person sewage passed by (Charles) Leclerc? But you tin only spell pinch nan accusation you person to hand."

There are a batch of unanswered questions astir this situation, but 1 that has been answered is whether Lance Stroll mislaid his temper successful nan Aston Martin garage aft qualifying connected Saturday.

On Sunday morning, this writer and different journalist asked an Aston Martin spokesperson whether claims that Stroll had banged instrumentality about, sworn astatine squad members, and stormed retired of nan car shed were true.

The spokesperson did not contradict nan story. They said: "Lance was upset."

Later that evening, an Aston Martin root contacted BBC Sport to contradict that thing was surgery aliases that Stroll swore astatine colleagues. But not nan cardinal truth of nan story.

This came to ray aft Aston Martin announced connected Saturday evening that Stroll had withdrawn from nan title because of symptom successful his manus and wrist, which they said his aesculapian advisor believed was related to nan cognition he had aft suffering 2 surgery wrists successful a cycling mishap earlier nan 2023 season.

There are a mates of ways of looking astatine this.

On nan 1 hand, for Stroll to beryllium truthful annoyed, apparently astir being knocked retired successful Q2 and being 0.535secs slower than team-mate Fernando Alonso, suggests he is very invested successful his effort to beryllium successful successful F1.

Stroll's erstwhile outburst aft qualifying came successful a akin situation, erstwhile he had been complete a 2nd slower than Alonso successful Qatar successful 2023.

But it is very different for an F1 driver to deliberately skip a title for an wounded aliases symptom of this kind.

Many drivers title pinch injuries, and Stroll himself raced pinch 2 fractures astatine nan commencement of 2023, aft nan cognition that nan squad opportunity his aesculapian advisor believes is astatine nan guidelines of his existent predicament.

As to whether this is nan opening of nan extremity for Stroll, only he knows.

He has a spot astatine nan squad arsenic agelong arsenic he wants. His begetter Lawrence owns it, and he fundamentally bought it truthful Lance could person a thrust successful F1, pinch nan purpose of becoming world champion.

Stroll is acold from nan astir communicative aliases amenable of F1 drivers pinch nan media. But, whenever he is asked, he ever says he is committed to F1 and nan team.

Norris has admitted successful nan first portion of this play that an facet of nan behaviour of nan McLaren car has been affecting his qualifying form, peculiarly what squad leader Andrea Stella says is simply a "numb" emotion from nan beforehand axle.

To resoluteness this issue, McLaren person been moving pinch Norris connected his driving, and person said that upgrades will beryllium introduced to nan car to thief nan issue.

Norris felt that he made a breakthrough pinch this successful Monaco, where he took rod position. After he qualified 2nd to team-mate Oscar Piastri successful Spain, he was asked whether he still felt he had made that progress.

Norris replied: "The velocity was easy location today. And sometimes you conscionable don't put nan laps in. Today was good.

"I was a small spot down astatine nan commencement of qualifying and I caught up nicely. I cognize wherever I mislaid that clip connected nan last lap. It was conscionable trying a small spot excessively overmuch and conscionable not being rather tidy capable – particularly astir a thigh for illustration Barcelona.

"One small oversteer successful Turn One, Turn Two, you benignant of already cognize it's going to beryllium a tricky remainder of nan lap. So, it's still good. I still consciousness fine. I'm happy pinch second, particularly successful Barcelona – it's not nan extremity of nan world. So, a affirmative weekend."

As for nan move betwixt nan 2 drivers, well, that's still playing out. Let's spot really nan adjacent fewer races cookware out.

This taxable was not covered successful Ferrari squad main Frederic Vasseur's post-race briefing. But carnivore successful mind that moving agelong is simply a modular maneuver successful Spain, to springiness nan driver a tyre offset against a rival.

Russell was only 2 seconds down Hamilton erstwhile Mercedes pitted him connected thigh 41, good wrong undercut range. So it would make consciousness for Ferrari to time off Hamilton retired for precisely this reason.

In immoderate case, this is not nan biggest rumor surrounding Hamilton aft nan Spanish Grand Prix.

The seven-time champion was downcast aft nan race. He mumbled done his media briefing, giving very short answers, if he answered questions astatine all, earlier excusing himself aft a mates of minutes.

He said: "I person nary thought why it was truthful bad", and said it was nan "worst title I've experienced, balance-wise." There were "zero" positives, he said.

Hamilton's concern, presumably, was his deficiency of pace.

He started nan title 2 places up of team-mate Charles Leclerc. It was an encouraging qualifying capacity by Hamilton, moreover if nan discourse was that Leclerc's convention had gone somewhat awry arsenic he tried to prevention 2 caller sets of mean tyres for nan race.

Leclerc passed Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli instantly and trailed adjacent down Hamilton until thigh 10, erstwhile Ferrari ordered Hamilton to fto him by.

In nan consequent 5 laps earlier his pit stop, Hamilton mislaid conscionable nether 4 seconds to his team-mate.

Leclerc stopped for nan first clip a thigh later than Hamilton. By nan clip nan Monegasque stopped again connected thigh 40, Hamilton was 10 seconds adrift.

That's hardly a disaster, but nor is it what Hamilton expects of himself.

In nan last portion of nan race, Vasseur said, Hamilton had a problem connected his car, nan personality of which he did not specify.

"He did 70% of nan title successful beforehand of Russell," Vasseur said. "I'm not judge that Russell said that nan title was a disaster. Then we had an rumor connected nan car, nan past stint (after) nan information car. The consequence is not good, but he did 45 laps successful beforehand of Russell."