George Russell Retains Miami Grand Prix Podium After Red Bull Protest Dismissed

George Russell has been allowed to keep his podium finish at the Miami Grand Prix following the dismissal of a post-race protest lodged by Red Bull Racing. The team had alleged that Russell violated yellow flag regulations during the race.

On Lap 33, shortly after Sauber driver Gabriele Bortoleto’s car came to a halt on the track due to an engine issue, a radio message from Max Verstappen was broadcasted, stating, “Check if George lifted, there was a yellow.” During cautionary periods, drivers are obligated to reduce their speed.

Verstappen ultimately finished the race behind Russell, and in the closing laps, his race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase encouraged the four-time world champion to maintain a gap of less than five seconds to the Mercedes driver.

After the race, Red Bull representatives visited the stewards to argue that although Russell may have lifted off the throttle, he did not do so sufficiently to alter his speed in compliance with the regulations.

However, the stewards disagreed with Red Bull’s assessment. Their verdict read:

“It was evident from the onboard footage as well as from telemetry that Car 63 lifted the throttle when passing the yellow flag zone. The throttle was lifted by approx. 25 percent and this resulted in a reduction of torque of approx. 30 percent.”

As a result of the stewards’ decision, the race order remained unchanged, with Russell maintaining his position ahead of Verstappen on the podium.