Thursday in Qatar | Formula 1 in suspense over Verstappen-Hamilton incident

Formula 1 has arrived in Qatar, where the premier class of motor sport will race for the first time this weekend. However, Thursday was dominated by the events in Brazil. Mercedes and Red Bull Racing had to appear before the stewards and the press conference was also dominated by the incident.

At 14:00 UK time, an important video call was scheduled to allow the rival teams to present their case again to the stewards. Mercedes disagreed with the decision not to penalise Max Verstappen for an incident with Lewis Hamilton at the Brazilian Grand Prix and therefore wanted to use the right to have the matter reviewed.

Stewards don't get out of Verstappen issue

To do that, the team came up with onboard footage from Verstappen's car, which race director Michael Masi said had not been factored into the original decision. Whether that evidence is enough to reopen the case remains to be seen, as the stewards announced after hours of deliberation that the decision will be postponed until Friday.

The race weekend at the Losail International Circuit kicked off with the press conferences, but these were also dominated by the Brazilian Grand Prix. Both Verstappen and Hamilton were mainly questioned about the incident and its aftermath, but other drivers were also caught up in it and had to give their opinions.

Red Bull wants investigation into Mercedes rear wing

The incident during the race is not the only thing that attracted attention. There was also a lot of controversy surrounding Mercedes' rear wing, for which the team was punished harshly in Brazil. The final word on that one hasn't been spoken yet either, as Red Bull have reason to believe that the part needs further investigation in terms of flexibility.

While all the drama of last week continues, it's up to the drivers and teams to focus on the upcoming race weekend. The circuit in Qatar is new for everyone, so it takes some extra effort to find the right approach. Verstappen made an unusual track walk to get to know the circuit.