An official document from the FIA, Formula 1’s governing body, explains why Max Verstappen avoided a harsher penalty.

On Sunday, Verstappen started from pole position for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, held on the Jeddah Corniche circuit.

However, the Dutchman’s chances of winning the race were dashed after he received a five-second penalty for a first-lap incident involving McLaren star Oscar Piastri.

The two drivers entered the first corner evenly spaced, with Piastri on the inside and Verstappen on the outside.

Approaching the bend, the Red Bull driver had to go off track before rejoining the action in first position.

After being questioned by the stewards, Verstappen was given a penalty for “leaving the track and gaining an advantage.”

Piastri won the race ahead of Dutchman and Ferrari star Charles Leclerc.

After the race, Verstappen was visibly unimpressed and refused to participate in the champagne celebrations on the podium before Red Bull boss Christian Horner presented footage to challenge the penalty.

However, according to the official FIA document, things could have been worse for Verstappen.

The document states that the usual penalty for leaving the track to gain an advantage would be 10 seconds.

However, the FIA ​​explained: “Normally, the basic penalty for leaving the track and gaining a sustained advantage is 10 seconds.

However, given that this was a first-lap, first-turn incident, we considered this a mitigating circumstance and imposed a 5-second penalty.

Fortunately for Verstappen, he will not receive an additional point on his license for his collision with Piastri.

Dutch F1 journalist Erik van Haren wrote on social media: “By the way, Verstappen won’t get any extra points on his license.” Because it wasn’t a dangerous incident (gaining an advantage by going off track).

“Verstappen already had eight points; the first will be added at the end of June.”

F1 will return next month with the Miami Grand Prix, which will be held on May 4