The Dutchman was reprimanded for misbehaving past Lando Norris in Japan.
Max Verstappen will start from pole position for the Japanese Grand Prix this Sunday at 7:00 a.m. but the Dutchman did not go far from a demotion on the grid due to a dangerous maneuver on the track during qualifying.
The reigning world champion, who was looking to warm up his tires, slightly lost control of his car which swerved to the left when Lando Norris (McLaren) arrived at full speed behind him. Fortunately, the Briton, thanks to a good turn of the wheel, swerved onto the grass bordering the track to avoid the championship leader.
The stewards conducted an investigation to assess the incident before issuing a simple reprimand to Verstappen who will therefore set off well ahead of the pack on Sunday to seek a second consecutive world title.
“I was driving quite slowly, I wanted to accelerate but my tires were a bit cold, so I had a difficult time. And of course Lando was trying to pass me at the same time, so he had to avoid me slightly. But luckily nothing happened.“Minimized Verstappen, relieved.