Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc were disqualified after the United States Grand Prix due to excessive plank wear. Max Verstappen has called for new rules that could have prevented that.
Max Verstappen wants to see a rule change after both Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc were disqualified from the US Grand Prix due to a technical infringement.
The pair were thrown out of the race due to excessive plank wear, owing to a combination of factors largely brought on by the Sprint weekend. A potential problem on the bumpy surface was not spotted until after qualifying had taken place, when all the cars entered Parc Fermé.
With Hamilton and Leclerc needing to make a setup change to compensate, the pair chose to gamble in the race instead of starting from the pit lane.
Verstappen believes this rule should be looked at again, especially considering the circumstances.
“If you went even slightly the wrong way in FP1, you’re stuck with that setup for the rest of the sprint weekend. That really sucks,” he told AmuS.
“We’ve had some really good sprint weekends this year, but I wasn’t completely satisfied. Take the ride height in Austin. Mercedes and Ferrari didn’t set their cars too low on purpose.
“But once you take the wrong turn [in terms of setup], there is no turning back. At most you can force something with the tire pressure. But if those prescribed values are already very high, then you’ve been seen.”
Verstappen suggested making adjustments to the race weekend format for Sprints, embracing the mooted idea of introducing two different Parc Fermé.
“One Parc Fermé for Saturday and one Parc Fermé for Sunday, for example,” said the three-time World Champion.
When asked if he envisions single-lap qualifying for the Sprint race, he did not show support: “That would be a bit risky. I think the current format is very good.
“I already don’t like the current format either with that mandatory medium-medium-soft tire selection. We already don’t know what’s wise: one fast lap, or still a fast lap, followed by a cool-down lap and another fast lap?
“Even I can’t keep track of exactly what the rules are anymore, which makes me feel lost. It’s like a circus.”
