Palmer Slams Verstappen’s ‘Unfair’ Tactics in Jeddah

Max Verstappen’s bold corner-cutting move in Jeddah is under fire, with experts calling it a desperate attempt to hold his lead.

Jolyon Palmer is convinced that Max Verstappen didn’t intend to make it through the first corner in Jeddah. Oscar Piastri had a similar view, expressing his frustration about being ahead as they approached the turn.

“He has to give that back, I was ahead,” the Australian radioed, referring to the incident. For Palmer, Verstappen’s actions were a “desperate attempt to hold on,” a reflection of the controversial racing tactics he used in the same corner back in 2021 when fighting for his first championship against Lewis Hamilton.

“I think this is another instance of Verstappen refusing to give up a position and pushing out of the corner to stay in front if possible. We’ve seen this many times before. We saw it here in Jeddah in 2021. Max always forces the stewards to make a decision, instead of simply yielding the place.”

Palmer pointed out that Piastri made an excellent start, which seemed crucial. “We’ll need the replay to form a clear opinion, but it looked like Max was never going to have enough space on the outside. It seemed like a desperate attempt to hang on, which he only managed by cutting the corner.”

David Coulthard, who also provides commentary for F1, agreed with Palmer’s assessment. “He was behind at the apex,” said the Scotsman, prompting Palmer to continue: “It’s not a fair fight. It’s simple and clear. What Verstappen did wasn’t fair, and he kept the position. But the truth is, he arrived with so much speed that he was never going to make the corner anyway.”

Palmer added: “The only other hope was that Oscar wouldn’t make the corner either, and they could both go off, with Max somehow still in front. But the McLaren would have been wiped out – no way Max could have stayed on track at that angle with that kind of attack. It’s a typical Max move, saying he was forced wide, using the outer track, and challenging the stewards.”

“Max releases the brakes at the corner entry. At the top of the first corner, he carries much more speed to try and round the outside. You can see him ease off the brakes while Piastri holds his position.”

“He only had a couple of steps to make, but he really let off the brakes, pushing to gain speed in a bold attempt to stay ahead. He could never have kept that position on track doing it that way.”

Looking at the data, Palmer explained that Verstappen was even faster through the first corner with 100 kilos of fuel, medium tires, and no apex than he was in qualifying the day before with soft tires, when he was about to claim pole position.

“At the apex of the first corner, he was actually carrying more speed, showing just how ambitious that maneuver was, and why it was highly unlikely he could hold it on track.”

Ralf Schumacher offered a theory on how Verstappen might have avoided a penalty: “In my opinion, and you’d need to confirm with the stewards, the corner-cutting itself wasn’t the biggest issue.”

“Instead, he took the shortest line and gained at least two car lengths. He just accelerated and took advantage of the situation. I think that’s the real reason for the penalty. He gained an advantage. If he had backed off a bit, they could have raced side by side into the next corner, and he might have gotten away with it.”

The former Jordan, Williams, and Toyota driver pointed out that Piastri hadn’t given Verstappen enough space on the exit of the corner, which could have resulted in a serious incident. Nonetheless, Schumacher maintained that the penalty against Verstappen was justified, as it would prevent others from trying the same move in the future.

“One thing is also very clear: Piastri didn’t give him space, so it could’ve easily led to an accident. But Verstappen just hit the throttle too early, and that’s why the penalty is justified. If not, this corner-cutting could become the norm, while Piastri simply had the better start in this case.”

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Palmer Slams Verstappen’s ‘Unfair’ Tactics in Jeddah Palmer Slams Verstappen’s ‘Unfair’ Tactics in Jeddah