Max Verstappen has avoided a further penalty from F1 stewards after the controversial Turn 1 incident involving Oscar Piastri at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. Verstappen was handed a five-second time penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage at the opening chicane after he felt Piastri forced him off on the first lap. Verstappen cut across the run-off at the second corner after finding Piastri on his inside, with both drivers having made strong launches off the line. It was quickly deemed by the stewards that the reigning world champion had not been forced off the circuit, resulting in the time penalty, which he served at his sole pit-stop. Piastri eventually won the race 2.8s clear of Verstappen, who currently has eight penalty points on his super licence. However, as no further action beyond the 5s penalty was awarded, the Dutchman still has eight on his licence, with 12 needing to trigger a ban. Verstappen's next set of points comes off after the Austrian GP in June.
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