Max Verstappen lands Red Bull in trouble with the stewards

A Max Verstappen incident has prompted action by the FIA stewards against Red Bull at Monza.

Red Bull were fined £428 on Friday at the Italian Grand Prix, after Max Verstappen was adjudged to have sped in the pit-lane.

The opening day at the ‘Temple of Speed’ was a mediocre one for the reigning World Champion, who topped Free Practice 1 before finishing fifth in Free Practice 2.

It was in FP2 were the Dutchman was caught speeding in the pit-lane, albeit only just.

Verstappen went 4.8kph over the 80kph pit-lane speed limit at Monza, resulting in Red Bull receiving a fine of just £428, based on the system of £84.60 per kph over the limit.

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The championship leader failed to set a real respected time in FP2, as he admitted after the session that he failed to “get a proper read on a few things”.

FP2 was actually topped by Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz, who led the field on the opening day following a solid 1m 21.355s,

Sainz’s lap was just under three-tenths quicker than Verstappen, whilst Lando Norris, Sergio Perez and Oscar Piastri occupied second to fourth.

Verstappen recognises that he still hasn’t got his car quite into the right operating window, with him believing that they “still need to analyse a bit”.

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“We’ve been trying a few different wing levels and I think we still need to analyse a bit what way to go,” Verstappen said at the end of the opening day.

“It’s sometimes a bit of a tricky thing around Monza. From my side, it probably could have been a little bit better.

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“So, [we’re] still fine-tuning a bit the low-speed to the high-speed, but I’m quite confident, of course, that we’ll get there. Also, I was a bit interrupted in FP2 to get a proper read on a few things, [so there’s] still a bit of work to do.”

It’s certainly a very big weekend for the Dutchman, who can become the first driver in the history of the sport to claim 10 consecutive wins on Sunday.

Verstappen’s win at the Dutch Grand Prix last weekend saw him match Sebastian Vettel’s record for nine consecutive victories, which the four-time World Champion set in 2013.