F1 champion Max Verstappen HYPOCRISY slammed as FIA row escalates

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Max Verstappen

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Verstappen HYPOCRISY slammed as FIA row escalates

Max Verstappen has been embroiled in an FIA row

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Saturday 5 October 2024 09:57 Updated: 11:31

Red Bull chief Helmut Marko has slammed the hypocrisy of the FIA's recent clampdown on Formula 1 champion Max Verstappen.

Verstappen was handed a community service-style punishment at the Singapore Grand Prix, having sworn in the official FIA press conference on the Thursday.

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The three-time world champion then decided not to give full answers in the rest of the weekend's mandatory press conferences, instead speaking to media separately.

A number of Formula 1 stars have since rallied to Verstappen's side in his fight against the sport's governing body, including Lewis Hamilton, and the Grand Prix Drivers' Association have been forced to unite.

Max Verstappen has recently been embroiled in an FIA row

Helmut Marko is a senior advisor at Red Bull

Helmut Marko hits out at FIA hypocrisy

A lot of criticism has been aimed the FIA's way surrounding the saga, with president Mohamed Ben Sulayem complaining that the body only gets 'rubbish' press.

Now, Marko has slammed the hypocrisy of the situation, citing Guenther Steiner's foul-mouthed rants on hit Netflix show Drive to Survive as reason for why the FIA should back down.

Speaking in his column for Speedweek, Marko said: "The FIA also went in the wrong direction with the penalty for Max, who used an expletive in the press conference on Thursday that is heard so often in the racing world that it is practically part of everyday language. In addition, he used the word to describe an object, i.e. a car, and not a person.

"I think that the yardstick is different when you look at what Guenther Steiner did, for example, without any consequences. The whole thing is clearly exaggerated and ridiculous, I think we have completely different concerns. But I thought Max's reaction was very good, the way he made it clear in the press conference what he thought about it, within the permitted limits - in very brief words.

Former Haas boss Guenther Steiner was infamous for his foul language in the paddock

"It was argued that it happened in a press conference held in the afternoon," Marko continued. "But you have to allow the emotions. Or if you're so moralistic, you can just bleep out the relevant statements.

"In general, Formula 1 is an emotionally charged sport in which it is part of the culture that drivers express their emotions according to their temperament.

"As a team, we can't do much about it, we can only hope that the sports authorities will see reason. You can't take the joy out of the drivers' work by having too many rules.

"Max needs the fun factor and the knowledge that the sport he does can also be done with joy. I myself am also a fan of the old English saying 'let them race'."

After being punished by the FIA, Verstappen hinted that he could potentially leave F1 in the future if things like this continued to happen.

Marko clearly has the three-time champions back, though, and that appears to be the same with regards to a lot of the F1 paddock.

Written by

Sam Cook - Digital Journalist

Sam Cook is a talented young sports journalist and social media professional who now specialises in Formula 1, having previously worked as a football journalist and a local news reporter for a variety of different brands.

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Red Bull Max Verstappen Lewis Hamilton FIA Helmut Marko