Montoya makes bold Verstappen's comparison as penalty decisions spark debate

Following the Canadian Grand Prix, debate continued over possible penalties for both Russell and Verstappen. The British driver braked behind the safety car, prompting the Dutchman to unintentionally pass him. After the race, Red Bull lodged a protest against Russell’s maneuver, which also ignited discussions online.

Last year, Verstappen sarcastically remarked that he “must have the wrong passport,” suggesting he’s penalized more often than others because of it. Juan Pablo Montoya sees parallels with his own time in Formula 1 and is calling for greater consistency in how penalties are handed out.

The FIA decided that Russell would not be penalized for the incident, thereby allowing him to keep his victory.

This was a cause for concern for Montoya: ‘’If that had happened to someone else, why then possibly give a penalty? If you analyze it, you should give everyone the same penalty. There must be consistency. If Max had done it, would there have been a penalty? I think so and that's the problem. There should be an automatic system, because we can't remove human emotions.’’

What does Montoya mean by an automatic system? ‘’Let's say the race direction doesn't make a decision at the moment, but that they analyze the actions.’’

The Colombian sees that Verstappen seems to be more often disadvantaged by FIA's decisions and notes that in his time there was also a certain degree of bias.