Max Verstappen has joked that he could time his next FIA penalty points perfectly for his baby’s birth after picking up two for his crash with Oscar Piastri at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
The Dutchman lunged up the inside of the McLaren driver at Turn One after getting a strong start, but understeered into the rear wheel of Piastri, sending both racers into spins.
Verstappen initially argued that the contact was “super unlucky” and even brandished the FIA stewards “stupid idiots” after serving a 10-second time penalty during his first pit stop, but the four-time world champion later admitted the clash to be his fault.
Red Bull’s star driver is now on eight penalty points for the 12-month period, meaning he is only two serious incidents away from a race ban. With the stewards handing out 10-second penalties at an extreme rate over the past two races, this is a legitimate possibility.
However, with a newborn baby on the way in 2025, this may not be such a bad thing. “Maybe I’ll make sure I get to 12 points when the baby is born,” he joked. “Then I can go on paternity leave.”
If Verstappen does continue on his current trajectory then he would become only the second driver to pick up a race ban under the rule, after Kevin Magnussen missed the Azerbaijan Grand Prix earlier this season.
For Piastri, the apology issued by Verstappen was enough to leave him satisfied. “Probably yes [the move was too optimistic],” he told Sky Sports F1 after the race. “But he came and apologised straight away and the stewards deemed it was a penalty.
“We go again next year. Obviously, it was a tough race from then on, but again, we achieved our main target and that’s what matters.”
Fortunately, while Piastri was only able to recover to finish in P10, Lando Norris’ commanding drive from pole position to victory proved enough to earn McLaren their first Constructors’ Championship title since 1998. Verstappen crossed the line down in P6, while team-mate Sergio Perez suffered an opening-lap DNF.
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