Grand Prix Drivers' Association chairman Alex Wurz has labelled the bad language punishment meted out to Max Verstappen at the Singapore Grand Prix as "extraordinary".
In Thursday's FIA-sanctioned drivers' press conference, the 26-year-old used the F-word in describing his Red Bull RB20, which drew the ire of the governing body on the day its president, Mohammed Ben Sulayem, had demanded the F1 drivers curb their foul language.
Once deemed guilty, the stewards' decided Verstappen was under "obligation to accomplish some work of public interest".
It has to be determined what the 'community service' might entail, but former F1 driver Wurz was less than impressed.
"The punishment is extraordinary," the 50-year-old told ORF. "The fact that you immediately go public, without first seeking dialogue and going to the drivers, they [the drivers] don't think it's cool.
"A driver has to be able to be himself. That's how Formula 1 once became very popular because the drivers were allowed to be themselves a bit more. Language use is also part of that."
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Part of the issue for Verstappen is his remarks came hours after Sulayem had called out the use of inappropriate language in F1, sharing a desire to prohibit the broadcast of team radio that includes potentially offensive interactions.
When asked about Ben Sulayem's stance on swearing, tantamount to a ban, the Dutchman disagreed. However, he did voice support for not broadcasting radio messages containing bad language.
The Red Bull driver highlighted that whilst he does not see the issue with swearing, abuse is a different matter, something Wurz agrees with.
"Personally, I'm not a fan of verbally attacking competitors," the Austrian said, before adding: "But if he is ranting about his car, then he should raise that with his team boss."
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