Vettel accuses FIA of showing partiality towards Verstappen – “It’s a bit of a shame”

Sebastian Vettel has accused the FIA of partiality towards Max Verstappen, saying that the laws don’t seem to apply for him.

There was controversy during the end of Q3 during the Qatar GP weekend. Footage showed Verstappen looking at a yellow flag as he came out of the final corner on his final flying lap. He should have slowed down the second he saw it, but failed to do so in the dying moments of Q3.

The backlash from fans led to the FIA calling him in for investigation. However, Vettel accused the FIA of partiality towards Verstappen, and suggested that they closed their eyes for him.

As quoted by RaceFans, when asked how he rated his performance, the Aston Martin driver said, “I’m pretty happy. We outqualified a Red Bull, Ferrari and McLaren, so I think we can be happy with that.

“It’s a bit of a shame because I had the yellow flag in the last sector and then the yellow flag cleared, I guess, because Max was coming.

Vettel: "A bit unnecessary" to review Hamilton/Verstappen incident
Vettel (pictured) thinks Verstappen should have slowed down. Source: motorsport.com

“(I) could have made a huge jump. It was just a bit disappointing to have the yellow flag.”

Rules are rules

The yellow flag meant Vettel failed to improve on his best lap time of 1:22.785. The flag was waved near the start-finish line when Pierre Gasly suffered a puncture and had to abort his session.

The Aston Martin driver revealed that even if he wasn’t exactly sure if it was a single or double yellow, it had to be the latter given the situation at the time.

“I don’t know if it was a single yellow or double yellow, but if there’s a car standing on track, then it should be a double yellow – and double yellows are ‘abort the lap’ so I lifted,” he added. “Maybe I was the only one.”

Read more: Vettel hints at wanting return to forefront – “The satisfaction in midfield is just not the same”

Add Comment