Protest dropped as Brit says Merc should "move on"; Team originally alleged that Max drove 'erratically and in a dangerous manner' when defending 2nd place; FIA had deferred decision until US GP
Monday 10 October 2016 07:23, UK
Mercedes have withdrawn their protest against Max Verstappen over his defending of second place versus Lewis Hamilton at the Japanese GP.
The team had initially alleged the teenager drove 'erratically and in a dangerous manner' on the penultimate lap when Hamilton sought to overtake the Red Bull.
According to Mercedes, their protest was withdrawn 'in the interests of establishing a final official result once it became apparent that the hearing cannot be concluded today'.
But there was confusion from Hamilton, with the world champion originally posting on Twitter: "There is no protest from either myself or Mercedes. One idiot said we have but it's not true. Max drove well, end of. We move on."
However, after apparently learning that the team had lodged an appeal, Hamilton then posted: "Just heard the team had but I told them it is not what we do. We are champions, we move on. End of!"
The incident in question had occurred when Hamilton closed in on Verstappen during the final stages of Sunday's race.
After the Mercedes driver attempted an ambitious overtake on the run to the chicane, Hamilton was forced to pull out of the corner when Verstappen refused to yield.
Hamilton takes blame for start
The FIA, the sport's governing body, originally stated that a decision wouldn't be made until the US Grand Prix in two weeks with neither driver available 'to give or refute evidence', as Mercedes only issued their complaint over three hours after the chequered flag had fallen in Suzuka.
A time penalty for Verstappen would have both sealed a belated one-two for Mercedes and closed Hamilton's gap to Nico Rosberg in the title race, which stands at 33 points with four races remaining after the German's victory.
Verstappen has drawn criticism from other drivers for his defensive driving throughout the campaign, clashing with Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen in particular, and stood his ground when questioned on the latest incident.
"I'm not going to open the door and say here you go," the teenager told Sky F1. "I saw him moving and as soon as I saw that I closed the door, and I think he was far enough that he could see I was going to do that."
Red Bull boss Christian Horner added: "I think it was firm but fair. Max was always going to go for the inside line. I think he committed just before the braking area. It was one move and decisive for the inside.
"You're not there to wave the other car through."
Mercedes confirmed in a statement that they had originally lodged a protest to the FIA under the following regulation: '27.5. At no time may a car be driven unnecessarily slowly, erratically or in a manner which could be deemed potentially dangerous to other drivers or any other person.
'This will apply whether any such car is being driven on the track, the pit entry or the pit lane.'
Despite stewards' investigations in the past, Verstappen has never been penalised for dangerous driving in 2016 - though he was given an unofficial warning at the Italian GP.
Hamilton, who cancelled his usual post-race press briefing in Japan, appeared to have calmed down in the press conference after his earlier protest that Verstappen had "moved under-braking" over team radio.
"It doesn't really matter now," he told reporters. "It's done and we move forwards."
Don't miss The F1 Report's review of the Japanese GP on Sky Sports F1 at 8.30pm on Wednesday evening.
