Max Verstappen would not discuss the penalty he was given in Saudi Arabia for fear of getting into trouble, writes Andrew Benson.

Max Verstappen opted to bite his lip rather than speak his mind following a controversial decision that cost him the win at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix on Sunday.

The stewards handed Verstappen a five-second penalty for gaining a lasting advantage after running wide at Turn 1, an incident triggered during his battle with Piastri. At the heart of the decision was whether Verstappen had been pushed off the track—or whether he voluntarily exceeded track limits and benefited from it.

The Australian driver calmly navigated his way to his third victory of the season, winning the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix and placing himself 10 points ahead of teammate Lando Norris in the driver standings. Piastri is the first Australian driver to lead the championship since his manager, Mark Webber, did so 15 years ago at Red Bull.

Johnny Herbert believes Max Verstappen was “unprofessional and disrespectful” on the Saudi Arabian GP podium after finishing second to Oscar Piastri on Sunday. Former F1 race winner Herbert added that Verstappen should have been given a 10-second penalty for the incident at turn one on lap one with Piastri,

When a driver is at the top of the motorsports food chain, getting podium finishes in Formula One, the level of scrutiny one is exposed to is something else. That’s clear with recent criticism of both Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen after the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.