Max Verstappen was handed a five-second penalty for crossing the pit exit line during the Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix. He retains fifth place after stewards confirmed the infraction using post-race video evidence. Charles Leclerc received a larger 20-second penalty, dropping him to eighth.
Max Verstappen, driving for Red Bull Racing, spun at the start of the F1 Miami Grand Prix, dropping down the order. He made an early pitstop on lap 6 during a safety car period triggered by accidents involving Isack Hadjar and Pierre Gasly. As he exited the pits under full course yellow, the outside of his front left-hand tyre crossed the solid white pit exit line, violating Appendix L, Chapter IV Article 6 c) of the International Sporting Code. Stewards imposed a five-second time penalty after reviewing new camera angles post-race due to initial limited video evidence. The stewards stated: 'When the incident occurred, there was limited video evidence to make a clear decision on whether an infringement had occurred. We therefore decided to investigate the incident after the race, to see if we could get better video evidence of the incident in the meantime, perhaps from other angles.' Verstappen explained he was rejoining the race under full course yellow. In the final corner, Verstappen overtook Ferrari's Charles Leclerc for fifth place. Leclerc received a 20-second penalty for cutting several corners on the last lap amid car damage, demoting him to eighth behind teammate Lewis Hamilton and Alpine's Franco Colapinto. Verstappen's penalty did not alter his position.
