Former F1 team principal Guenther Steiner shared his opinion on the FIA's punishment for Max Verstappen after he used a swear word in a press conference.
FIA (F1's regulatory body) has recently decided to try to decrease the usage of swear words during live broadcasts. In light of this recent push, the organization warned drivers to watch their language.
Despite the warnings, Max Verstappen casually used an F-word as he described problems with his car during the official FIA press conference ahead of the Singapore Grand Prix.
The Dutchman was summoned to stewards, and it was decided that he would be given a more severe penalty (as it wasn't his first time) and ordered "to accomplish some work of public interest."
Many current and former F1 drivers, such as Lewis Hamilton, Lando Norris, and Ralf Schumacher, expressed disagreement with how FIA handled the situation.
The chairman of the GPDA (Grand Prix Drivers' Association), Alexander Wurz, even pointed out how former F1 team principal Guenther Steiner "was glorified with his F-word in Netflix" and how no one cared that it was broadcasted worldwide.
Steiner shared what he thinks about the situation during his most recent appearance on the Red Flags podcast. He said:
"First of all, you have never heard me cursing in a press conference or anything like this. I don't have feelings about [Ben Sulayem - FIA president], to be honest."
"I don't think it's exaggerated, what [Verstappen has] done. I think when Max did it in a press conference, he explained the situation about his car, not about a person."
"Is there other words he could have chosen? Yes, he could. He said that a terminology which is used a lot. Is it right? Maybe it isn't right, but is it wrong? Maybe also not. I'm very much on the fence here."
Regarding the swearing on team radios during practice sessions, qualifying, and races, most agree drivers shouldn't be punished, considering the high levels of adrenaline and heat of the moment. Steiner continued:
"In the race, when they are over the radio, I can fully understand [swearing] because the adrenaline must be high."
"You see where you are at. Somebody does something stupid, obviously you have a go at it, but what you say there, you don't mean it. You don't take that home with you."
"You say it and I think FOM is very good at bleeping it out. When they're bleeping out, people obviously know what the guy said. I don't think it was necessary to make such a big thing out of it."
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