The second practice session at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez turned chaotic when Max Verstappen and Liam Lawson collided during a dramatic on-track squabble, prompting swift intervention from the FIA stewards. The friction ignited as Verstappen geared up for a flying lap and attempted to pass Lawson, who was running a slow cooling-down lap ahead of Turn 12. Lawson fought back fiercely through the ensuing stadium section corners, culminating in Verstappen driving over the kerb at Turn 14 where the two cars ultimately made sharp contact.
The impact left both machines carrying noticeable bodywork damage and scattered debris across the tarmac, forcing race control to throw a brief red flag to clear the track. After thoroughly examining video footage, car telemetry data, and conducting interviews with both drivers, the stewards decided to hand down grid drops alongside a single penalty point on their respective FIA superlicences for unacceptable on-track conduct during Friday afternoon's session.
In their official ruling, the stewards noted that both drivers openly admitted the moves were entirely unnecessary and clumsy. The panel further highlighted a warning previously issued during the team managers' meeting on Friday, alongside prior practice precedents, as the primary justification for issuing tangible grid penalties rather than basic formal warnings ahead of the Mexico City GP weekend.
Before official sanctions were handed down, Verstappen did not hold back in criticizing Lawson's on-track judgment, publicly linking the clash to the New Zealander's ongoing pressure to secure his future seat. Verstappen remarked that such aggressive driving was not very smart behavior when fighting for a career preservation. Meanwhile, Racing Bulls team principal Alan Permane adopted a balanced stance, emphasizing that neither driver was entirely blameless in an avoidable practice incident.
Despite the damage severely affecting his car's aero performance, Verstappen managed to salvage fifth place at the checkered flag of FP2, while Lawson finished right behind in ninth position. Both drivers had previously sat out the opening FP1 session to accommodate junior drivers Ayumu Iwasa and Nikola Tsolov.
Baca Juga
Jack Doohan berpeluang besar kembali ke kokpit F1 menyusul situasi pelik yang dialami tim Haas. Baca analisis mendalam di sini.
Max Verstappen kembali kritik tajam Liam Lawson usai penalti FP2 GP Meksiko. Simak analisis mendalam dinamika paddock Formula 1 di sini.
Max Verstappen dan Liam Lawson dijatuhi penalti grid usai terlibat insiden di FP2 GP Meksiko. Baca analisis mendalam dan kronologi lengkapnya di sini.
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