'Inspector Seb' calls on F1 to "relax" after parc fermé clampdown

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'Inspector Seb' calls on F1 to "relax" after parc fermé clampdown

Verstappen was fined €50,000 for touching Hamilton's Mercedes in Brazil

Sam Hall

Thursday 18 November 2021 15:40

Sebastian Vettel has claimed Formula 1 "need to relax" after clamping down on parc fermé regulations.

Max Verstappen was handed a €50,000 fine in Brazil after he was seen touching both his own rear wing and that of title rival Lewis Hamilton in parc fermé following the conclusion of qualifying.

Although not a breach of either the F1 sporting or technical regulations, this was a breach of the FIA international sporting code that governs all sports sanctioned by the governing body.

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Asked if he was aware of his 'Inspector Seb' nickname across social media for his frequent glances, or more, across rivals cars during his career, Vettel said: “I didn’t know that!"

"Maybe I quote another driver [Fernando Alonso], ‘I think it’s a yoke. A yoke.’”

In response, Lando Norris, sat alongside Vettel in the Thursday media session, said: “But you can’t touch cars.”

Vettel responded: "No, we can’t touch cars. What’s the point? We sit in them. Are we allowed to touch our cars?

“I think we need to relax a little bit.”

After Verstappen was handed his fine, former driver Martin Brundle called for the opposite of Vettel, insisting F1 must tighten its procedures and claimed the sport has let things slide for too long.

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