Johnny Herbert provided insight into the 'Max Verstappen versus FIA swearing saga' insisting the three-time Formula 1 World Champion deserved the controversial penalty he was handed by officials in Singapore.
Ex-Formula 1 driver turned independent pundit, Herbert revealed that he was among the FIA-appointed F1 stewards who decided to penalise Verstappen. The punishment meted out being 'community service' for using an expletive during the FIA-hosted F1 driver's press conference, on the Thursday, ahead of the Singapore Grand Prix weekend.
Those headlines oozed derision for the saga, including us on this website who felt the whole affair was petty, overshadowing a glorious season where Verstappen is central to a championship that is set to go down to the wire. Was this really necessary?
According to Herbert, indeed it was, and this is the side of the story that few of us perhaps contemplated when jumping up to defend Verstappen with little inkling of the other side of the story.
In an exclusive interview made possible by the media team at Casino Hawks, Herbert said: “I was a steward at Singapore, and Max Verstappen had to be punished for swearing."
Herbert: At the FIA press conference in Singapore, Max used the ‘F-word' about his car.
"The press conferences are broadcast around the world. There is more swearing than there ever has been. A press conference is not the place for it," insisted Herbert. "Some journalists have said the sport is trying to make robots out of the drivers. That’s not the case. You are just asking them not to swear, which I think is the right thing. Most drivers don’t swear.
“The incident was referred to us as stewards. We had a good open chat with Max for about 20 minutes, or half an hour, in what was a difficult situation. You could see in his face he was really worked up about it. But when he left, he appeared to be mollified about the process and why it was there. He did not blame us as stewards.
“As stewards, we have a range of tools to punish drivers. We are there to implement the rules and make decisions together. We could have fined him, but we felt it would be more beneficial to get him to do something socially responsible. It is up to Max and the FIA what that is.
“It all blew up afterwards because he went to the press conference and gave one-word answers, then held his own impromptu press conference outside in the paddock. That showed Max’s rebellious streak.
"I love that side of him; it is what makes Max, Max, his honest and outspoken character. But there is a time and a place. Personally, I think there is too much swearing. I don’t want my five-year-old grandchild listening to that sort of language," ventured Herbert.
Did Ben Sulayem's "we're not rappers" comment trigger the FIA F1 Stewards action?
The swearing saga was triggered by an interview given by FIA chief Ben Sulayem, where he pointed out that "we're not rappers" and F1 drivers needed to clean up their act in terms of using foul language.
The "rappers" comment was perceived as “stereotypical” with a “racial element by Lewis Hamilton but countered by Herbert: “There is an FIA code about not using foul language. A week before, the FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem had talked about swearing and saying F1 drivers shouldn’t swear, and they were not ‘rappers.’
"That did not go down very well with the drivers who were antagonised, especially Lewis, who felt it was a racial slur. The drivers were not happy about it. They all bandied together with Max.
"I have noticed that the drivers are a much closer-knit bunch than I have seen for many years. They have much stronger opinions on issues. Swearing is something Ben Sulayem wants to stamp out.
"You can’t do so much in the heat of the moment during a race in the car when emotion comes out," added Herbert of the pitwall to the driver radio message (which will remain delayed and profanities beeped out if used), where swearing in the heat of battle is unavoidable.
This unwelcome F1 saga grabbed headlines since it broke in Singapore, with the likes of Lando Norris and Hamilton criticising the penalty. While Verstappen has engaged in a 'no comment protest' during official engagements but was urged by Martin Brundle not to waste energy on the matter.
Herbert: I hope that common sense prevails
From an FIA Stewarding perspective, going forward Herbert said, “I hope it doesn’t come down to that if Max swears in a press conference at the US Grand Prix and that commonsense prevails.
“There has to be an understanding that both sides need to work together. I know the FIA President is unhappy with foul language. There is an understanding among drivers that swearing at a press conference is not right.
"It is just something that built up from the President’s initial ‘rappers’ comment, which some found offensive to then Max being dragged before the stewards in Singapore. We had a meeting with the drivers afterwards when at least one, who I won’t name, made clear that, in his opinion, swearing was not acceptable.
“There are many youngsters around the world who love the sport and worship the drivers. Drivers have to understand that they are role models. We made the decision that there was a case to answer if you like. It is between Max and the FIA to agree what the sanction should be and what it would be. That part is out of our control," concluded Herbert.
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