The Red Bull driver gave a direct response at the Singapore Grand Prix, expressing his disapproval of the FIA’s new regulations.
Following his discovery of profanity during the drivers’ press conference on Thursday, Max Verstappen responded bluntly to the FIA stewards’ decision to sanctions him.
Following Friday’s opening free practice, the three-time world champion was summoned to the stewards in Singapore. The FIA then declared that he had violated their international sporting code and would be required to perform community service-like tasks within the Formula One sport.
The driver for Red Bull received what may be the first of several penalties for using profanity in Singapore, as FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem aims to punish drivers who use offensive language.
“I mean, we have to differentiate between our sport – motorsport – and rap music,” the Emirati supremo said to Autosport. You know, we’re not rappers. How many times a minute do they say the F-word? That is not where we are at. We are [us], and that’s them.”
In video that went viral on social media, Verstappen gave a meek response to the new, stringent regulations in his post-FP2 interview, saying only two words before leaving.
“Can we also just have a word about this FIA situation today, we’ve got some-,” the F1 TV interviewer began. Verstappen interrupted her with, “No words,” before leaving the media pen.
During the press conference, Verstappen made the following remarks regarding the broadcast of swear words: “That will help a lot more than putting bans on drivers.” For instance, I was unable to pronounce the F-word. It’s not even all that horrible, really? “The car is f*, it wasn’t working,” he exclaimed.
“And then, pardon my language, but what the heck are we doing? Is it five or six years old? A five- or six-year-old will eventually swear even if their parents won’t or won’t permit it, even if they are watching.
“As they get older, they’ll swear while they stroll around with their friends. As you are aware, nothing will change as a result of this.
Although Verstappen’s comments were deemed to be “coarse, rude,” and “may cause offense,” the ruling stated that Verstappen’s punishment was lessened because they were not directed towards a different driver or team.
“When summoned to the stewards, the driver explained that the word used is ordinary in speech as he learned it, English not being his native language,” the FIA stewards’ statement stated.
The stewards acknowledge that this might be the case, but they believe that role models should practice mindfulness when they speak in public, especially when they’re not feeling particularly pressed for time. Verstappen expressed regret for his actions.
“The stewards have observed that language that is offensive to or disparaging of particular groups has resulted in sizable fines. Here, this isn’t the case.
“However, given that this subject has been brought up previously and is widely known among the competitors, the stewards decided to impose a harsher punishment than in the past and require Verstappen to ‘complete some work of public interest,’ in cooperation with the FIA’s Secretary General for Sport.”
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