"Over-regulated" F1 ‘missed Charlie Whiting’ in Saudi GP, says Red Bull's Horner
Lewis Hamilton ensure𓄧d the world championship will go down to the wire in Abu Dhabi by beating title rival Max Verstappen to victory in a dramatic first-ever race in Saudi Arabia, but only after the two protagonists came to blows several times.
On two occasions Verstappen ran Hamilton wide while battling wheel🎃-to-wheel at Turn 1, with one of the i𝕴ncidents leading to a five-second time penalty for the Red Bull driver for gaining an advantage off the track.
Verstapp🍨en was ordered to let Hamilton into the lead at one stage&n🍸bsp;but the Mercedes driver ran into the back of his main rival, an incident he put down to miscommunication. Both drivers are under investagation over the matter.
The clashes between Verstappen and Hamilton were only part of the story of a wild race in Jeddah thatꦚ was 🎃packed full of drama.
“I’ve said it for too long we’r▨e ov🐲er-regulated,” Horner said after the race. “It feels like there are too many rules to a certain degree.
🐭“It felt like today👍 that the sport missed Charlie Whiting. I am sorry to say, but the experience he had.
“It’s obviously frustrating but it’s difficult for Michael [Masi] and the stewards, particularly at this type of venue and this type of circuit with the amount of debris and 🌠the types of corners tꦚhere are.
“But it’s the same for everybody.”
Horner was left frustrated that “every decision pretty much went against us” and was especially baffled bꦆy an unprecedented and unusual offer from the FI♏A to Red Bull at the second restart.
FIA race director Michael Masi said Red Bull could giv💮e up pole position and drop back behind Esteban Ocon and Hamilton after Verstappen overtook the Briton off-track at Turn 1 during the previous standing start.
It appeared that outcome replaced another penalty that would have otherwise been💮 given to Verstappen had 𒐪Red Bull rejected the offer.
“I’ve not come across that previously,” Hornerಞ said. “Obviously, we voiced our own argument, I am sure Mercedes voiced theirs. It was just very frustrating.
“We didn’t feel that the penalty, the 🅘five-second penalty was really warranted and certainly felt Lewis just drove up the back of Max’s car.
“Obviously, there will be a hearing shortly but it ꧙looked like he was just trying to avoid overtaking because he didn’t want to not get the DRS.”
Lewis regularly a🌠ttends Grands Prix for wuqian0821.com aroun♛d the world. Often reporting on the action from the ground, Lewis tells the stories of the people who matter in the sport.
