Abu Dhabi Grand Prix race director Niels Wittich was forced to declare overtaking in the pit lane as prohibited outside of extenuating circumstances after Max Verstappen caused chaos with his actions during Friday’s second practice session.
Verstappen found himself in the headlines for the wrong reasons on Friday following some impatient overtaking manoeuvres in the pit lane. The reigning world champion was in a rush to get out on track at the start of FP2, attempting to barge past both Mercedes drivers in the underpass.
After moving past George Russell he came across his team-mate Lewis Hamilton in the middle of the pit lane, moving onto the outside kerb in an attempt to get around the seven-time world champion.
In doing so, Verstappen nearly made contact with the outside wall as he risked damage to his RB19 to gain track position. Having moved past both Mercedes cars, the Dutchman then pulled the same trick on Alpine driver Pierre Gasly before settling into his place in the queue.
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Explaining his role in the pit-exit incidents, Verstappen said: “They have to move! They are all driving slow and I want to go out because we are all limited on time and they just keep on driving in the middle. Then I went to pass, they try to squeeze me in the wall. So a bit silly.”
The result of Verstappen’s antics was a clarification from race director Wittich. In his Saturday morning event notes, he confirmed: “Overtaking is prohibited in the pit exit road unless a car slows with an obvious problem.”
The three-time world champion was extra anxious to get out on track and lay down some laps after he was forced to miss FP1 earlier in the day. Heading into the season finale Red Bull had yet to field a rookie driver in either car, meaning both Verstappen and team-mate Sergio Perez sat out the first session.
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In Verstappen’s car for the morning was reigning Formula E world champion Jake Dennis. The 28-year-old has been doing simulator work with Red Bull for five years, but this was his first-ever outing during a Grand Prix weekend.
Perez’s replacement for the morning was French teenager Isack Hadjar, who already made his first appearance in a timed F1 session earlier this season during FP1 for the Mexican Grand Prix. The 19-year-old is highly rated by Helmut Marko and is now preparing for his sophomore Formula 2 campaign.
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