Sainz believes Verstappen should have received grid penalty after Austria qualifying crash

Verstappen brought out the yellow flag after crashing at Turn 9 in the final moments of qualifying for the Austrian Grand Prix. Kimi Antonelli abandoned his lap after mistakenly believing that the double yellows had been brought out, while George Russell took pole position after slowing down just enough under the single yellow to still set the fastest time.

Sainz believes Verstappen should have received a three-place penalty and has called on a meeting where he will propose his ideas, insisting that he probably won't have time at Silverstone due to it being a sprint weekend.

Speaking to the media including GPblog, he said: "If Max would have been on pole in the first run and then he produces that crash and then not everyone is in a red flag and no one improves the lap, I think it would be unfair for George, Kimi and everyone because the guy that is on pole is not letting us improve the lap time.

Sainz though did point out that Verstappen did not bring out the yellow flags on purpose as he was P3 at the time of his accident.

Sainz added that the Dutchman's crash should have brought out a double yellow or red flag, but did compliment Russell the way he handled the incident to still go pole.

Verstappen also defended Russell when speaking to the media on Thursday but raised concerns over the lack of double yellow when he went off into the gravel. The Dutchman told the media: "I think, first of all, it should not have been a single yellow. At least a double yellow or a red, first of all.