The truth behind the Verstappen - Hamilton crash at the F1 Hungarian Grand Prix 2024: An in-depth analysis.

 Abstract

One of the most exciting moments of the 2024 Hungarian Grand Prix was the incident between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton. The FIA Stewards' Commission decided to take no further action, but is this the right decision?

The incident and the FIA’ s decision

The 2024 Hungarian Grand Prix will be a race to remember in F1 history for several reasons: Team orders, spectacle, overtaking and Oscar Piastri's first win. However, one of the most important moments of the race was undoubtedly the collision between Max Verstappen (car no. 1) and Lewis Hamilton (car no. 44), which took place in the first corner of the circuit, on lap 63 of 70.

The incident was immediately noted by the stewards with documents no. 37 and no. 38, which summoned both drivers after the race for clarification. The final decision was made with document no. 42, which, after a brief analysis of what had happened and what the two drivers thought of the incident, stated: “Accordingly we determine that no driver was predominantly to blame and decide to take no further action.”[1]

Was this the right decision given the dynamics of the incident? To answer this question, we need to take a closer look at what happened on the track, with the help of some footages from different angles provided by F1.

An in-depth analysis of the incident

In order to understand what happened, it is important to explain the context before the crash. Max Verstappen was trying to recover from a bad pit stop strategy and was also having a "not so polite" conversation with his team. On the other hand, Lewis Hamilton was trying to defend his position with a tyre disadvantage. At the start of lap 63, they both overtook Alexander Albon (a lapped car) and then approached turn one in a clear situation, considering that no.44 had a safe margin to approach the first turn and made its trajectory as you can see in the first image.

As showed in the first image, no. 44 was already turning at this point, taking into account the positional advantage. This is not only clear from the various pictures and videos, but is also confirmed in Document no. 42, which states that: “The driver of Car 44 stated that he was simply following his normal racing line (which was confirmed by examination of video and telemetry evidence of previous laps).”

Then Verstappen decided to make a manoeuvre that was beyond the capabilities of his car and tried to overtake no. 44, who had already started to turn.

As showed by image no.2, even approaching the corner, Hamilton was in front of Verstappen and as stated by the general rules on driving conduit in art. 2 lett. B of Chapter IV of Annex L of the FIA International Sporting Code 2024: “Any driver … should leave at least one car width between his own car and the edge of the track on the approach to the corner.”[2]It is evident that no. 44 left enough space even if in front of no.1.

Moving to image no. 3, it is easy to see that car no. 1 has locked up its tyres trying to enter the corner at a higher speed than possible. Obviously, at this point, even before seeing the smoke from Verstappen's tyres, as shown by the black line on the tarmac, the car was no longer controllable by car n.1. Furthermore, by looking at the lines drawn to highlight the two trajectories, it is understandable how car n.1 will inevitably be in the same racing line as car n.44. This analysis is also confirmed by Document no. 42, which states that “It was clear that Car 1 locked up both front wheels on the approach to turn 1 prior to any impact occurring but missing the normal cornering line for a typical overtaking manoeuvre.”

At this point, the collision was inevitable and the two drivers collided with their tyres, causing car number 1 to go airborne. Despite the spectacular crash, no cars were damaged.

Document n.42 and why this is not the right decision

After an in-depth review of what happened, we can look back at Document no. 42 and to the Appendix L of the International Sporting Code.

The strangest thing about this document is that the analysis of what happened is almost perfect. The stewards correctly analysed all the manoeuvres made by the drivers and even stated that “it is our determination that the driver of Car 44 could have done more to avoid the collision.”[3](this is true but, on the other hand, the only thing that car no.44 could have done was to completely back off from the racing line and give the position to the opponent, a thing that is impossible to ask to a racing driver who was completely ahead at the time of approaching a corner.).

So, the key question is: what is wrong with the stewards decision?

And the answer is that, even if they started with the right premises and all the elements to make a correct decision the stewards just forgot about the art. 2 Lett. D of Chapter IV of the International Sporting Code, even if it was the infringement for which the two drivers were summoned after the race.

As a matter of fact, this article states that:” Causing a collision, repetition of serious mistakes or the appearance of a lack of control over the car (such as leaving the track) will be reported to the Stewards and may entail the imposition of penalties up to and including the disqualification of any driver concerned.[4]

Now it is clear why the decision is wrong. It is evident how Max Verstappen caused a collision by losing control of his car, due to a mistake caused by himself (misjudging the braking point and the possibility to overtake), and the fact that no cars were damaged is not a reason to avoid giving penalty to a such dangerous manoeuvre that could have caused a lot more problems if just tyres had touched in a slightly different position, as seen in the Verstappen – Hamilton crash at the Monza Grand Prix 2021.

It is difficult to understand why there is such a lack of consistency in the stewards' decisions and why this problem seems to be unavoidable by the FIA, which seems unable to keep up with the incredible pace that Formula One has achieved in terms of appeal and economic growth. There may be other considerations, but for the purposes of this article they will be set aside.

In conclusion, what would it be the right decision for the Hamilton – Verstappen crash during the 2024 F1 Hungarian GP?

Looking to all evidence available and pursuant to the art.2 lett. D of Chapter IV of Appendix L of the International Sporting Code, the only right decision to make is to consider that car n. 1 has breached the aforementioned rule, and has caused a collision with car no. 44, for which reason a penalty of 10 seconds will be added to the final time of arrival.

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[1] Official document n.42 of F1 2024 Hungarian Grand Prix, FIA.

[2] art. 2 lett. B, Chapter IV of Annex L, FIA International Sporting Code, 2024

[3] Official document n.42 of F1 2024 Hungarian Grand Prix, FIA.

[4]   art. 2 lett. D, Chapter IV of Annex L, FIA International Sporting Code, 2024