Max Verstappen has been punished by Formula One’s governing body for swearing in the immediate aftermath of a backlash by the world champion and other drivers against the FIA president, Mohammed Ben Sulayem, and his demand that drivers cease to use bad language. It is a dispute Verstappen is expected to vigorously return to as this weekend’s meeting in Singapore progresses.
Early this week Ben Sulayem had said: “We have to differentiate between our sport – motorsport – and rap music. We’re not rappers, you know. They say the f-word how many times per minute? We are not on that. That’s them and we are [us]”.
He was subsequently accused by Lewis Hamilton of using stereotypical bias informed by a “racial element” in citing rap artists, while both Verstappen and his title rival Lando Norris insisted that sometimes swearing was part of the intense demands and emotional pressure of competing in a dangerous sport.
Verstappen then swore in the televised FIA press conference on Thursday, referring to his car at the last round in Baku as “fucked”. Less than 24 hours later he was summoned to the stewards and after a hearing of 13 minutes was issued with a punishment for using language deemed under the rules to be “coarse, rude or may cause offence”. He will be expected to “accomplish some work of public interest” yet to be defined.
The FIA regulations are clear that drivers are expected to be role models and specify against using words or deeds that can cause “moral injury”. The FIA statement said Verstappen apologised and made his case that “the driver explained that the word used is ordinary in speech as he learned it, English not being his native language”. This argument was dismissed.
The governing body’s decision will only compound what is set to be a difficult weekend for the world champion in Singapore. He comes into the race with a 59-point lead over Norris but the Red Bull is expected to struggle at the Marina Bay circuit.
With seven meetings remaining and 206 points available Norris needs to outscore Verstappen by an average of nine points per race. While it is a tall order, the target could be markedly cut if Norris wins and Verstappen scores poorly in Singapore.
That the Dutchman and Red Bull are taking nothing for granted was made clear before this round when they announced they were to drop the proposed fan-inspired liveries for their car for this race and the following US GP. The decision was made after the team assessed that the new livery would add approximately 1kg of weight, translating to around three-hundredths of a second per lap. It is a tiny margin but indicative of how hard Red Bull feel they now have to push.
Their car has been suffering with a lack of balance since the Miami GP and Verstappen has not won since the Spanish GP on 23 June, eight races ago. They believe they are working towards a solution but which will not be available to use until Austin, while Singapore, the only race Red Bull did not win in 2023, a punishing series of 19 corners, on a bumpy street circuit with severe kerbs, is the least suited of the year to the RB20.
Last season both Verstappen and his teammate Sergio Pérez failed to make the final round of qualifying and while the Dutchman recovered to fifth it was in a car that was dominant and without the deficiencies of the current model. Moreover, their advantage over the opposition has all but disappeared this season.
Verstappen was notably circumspect before the weekend began, admitting that just making it to the top 10 in qualifying “should be possible”, while he described a win as requiring “a small miracle”.
Overtaking at Marina Bay is tricky and more so without a major speed advantage, which the Red Bull no longer enjoys.
Certainly practice in Singapore did not bode well for the world champion. While he was fourth in the unrepresentative day running of first practice, in the second session under the floodlights at night, he could manage only 15th, struggling with a lack of grip.
Pérez was only marginally better in eighth, while Norris was quickest from Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz, with the Scuderia and his McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri set to offer the strongest threat to Norris as he claws back points in the title fight.
McLaren confirmed in Singapore they are to modify the rear wing they used at the last round in Baku after complaints about its legality, including from Red Bull. The wing had passed FIA legality tests but was seen flexing at high speed in Baku. After conversations with the FIA the team has agreed to modify the design but it applies only to the specification used for high-speed, low-drag tracks such as Baku and Monza and which will likely next be used in Las Vegas in November.