BUDAPEST, Hungary – Max Verstappen’s Red Bull team received a warning from the stewards of the Hungarian Grand Prix. The world champion was sanctioned for throwing a towel from the cockpit of his single-seater while on the track during Friday’s practice.Verstappen was seen throwing a white towel out of the cockpit of his Red Bull between turns 3 and 4 midway through the second practice session.The towel remained at the side of the track until the end of the session. Verstappen and a team representative were called before the stewards after the checkered flag to explain the incident.Red Bull was warned for allowing the car to leave the pits in unsafe conditions.
The stewards determined that the towel could have lodged in the footrest and interfered with the driver’s ability to fully control the car, so the car was released in unsafe conditions.After the session, Verstappen commented on the incident:Shortly after car number 1 (Verstappen) left its garage, it was observed that the driver had thrown a towel out of the cockpit. The driver explained that, while in the garage, the towel had slipped from his lap towards the side of the seat and the team was unaware that it remained in the cockpit.
Stewards’ statement
Verstappen finished Friday’s practice with the fourteenth-best time, after having problems with the balance of his Red Bull throughout the session.It’s just a towel that you normally wipe your face with when you get back to the pits and it was still in the car when I left. Instead of it flying between my feet, which of course is the dangerous part, I went off-line and got rid of it in the safest way possible. So I think the stewards understand.
Max Verstappen
Today was very tough, just a feeling of very little grip. There’s really no balance in the car, so it’s difficult to say what was wrong because nothing really worked. We have to investigate overnight because so far this hasn’t really been our weekend.
Max Verstappen
