FIA Director Michael Masi Warns Max Verstappen Against Repeating His F1 Victory Celebration

Race wins are a big deal in F1, and when you’re involved in a tight championship battle where every win matters, it’s only fair for the driver to celebrate every win. And that’s exactly what Max Verstappen did after his win at the Styrian GP. Unfortunately, his celebration didn’t sit right with FIA Director Michael Masi, who felt that the Dutchman went a bit too far.

It was a fairly simple day at the office for Verstappen, who won the race with a lead of over 35 seconds and faced negligible competition throughout the race.

With his fourth win this season, the Dutchman has extended his championship lead over Hamilton to 18 points.

Watch Story: 5 F1 Crashes Which Stunned the World

It’s something that would not be tolerated in the future: Masi

According to GrandPrix247, Verstappen celebrated his victory by doing a tire burnout near the pit wall. Unfortunately, Masi came down hard on his victory celebration; he immediately informed Red Bull and also issued a warning to the Dutchman.

“It was not an ideal situation, which is why I spoke to the team immediately and told them accordingly that it’s something that would not be tolerated in the future,” said Masi.

In the sporting regulation of F1, the drivers may celebrate their victory safely on track so it does not endanger any official or drivers on track. However, Max did the tire burnout when all the other cars were still in the race and completing their final laps at fast speeds, which meant that it was a risky move.

Read More: Why Do F1 Drivers Pickup Rubber?

Are Red Bull and Max Verstappen favorites for the rest of the season?

With the next race at the same track, Max has a chance to further extend his championship lead over Hamilton. Since Red Bull were dominant at the Styrian Grand Prix, expectations are the same for the Austrian Grand Prix.

In addition to winning four back-to-back races, the Milton Keynes outfit have won the last two races on tracks that would normally wouldn’t suit their car. Thus, they are confident they can challenge the defending champions on every circuit this season.

Will Max Verstappen emerge victorious at the Red Bull Ring again? Or will Lewis Hamilton regain his top stop? Or perhaps a different winner altogether?