Max Verstappen set for stewards investigation over yellow flags at Singapore Grand Prix

Max VerstappenMax VerstappenRed Bull · Netherlands · Driver6th POS188 PTS is set to be investigated after sprint qualifying for the Formula 1Formula 1 World ChampionshipInternational Singapore Grand Prix, over an alleged infringement of yellow flag rules. The Red BullRed Bull RacingAustria4th POS298 PTS driver is reported to have overtaken Lewis Hamilton inside a yellow flag zone during the session. No penalty has been announced and no outcome of any hearing has been made public.

2026

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POS

6th

PTS

188

WINS

1

PODIUMS

8

Season 2026

What is reported to have happened

The caution period is reported to have followed an incident involving Sergio Perez, who is said to have gone straight into the barrier at Turn 5 in his Cadillac and broken his front wing. That flag zone is the area in which Verstappen is reported to have passed Hamilton. How much damage Perez sustained beyond the front wing, and whether he was able to continue, has not been confirmed.

What a yellow flag infringement involves

Ank kumar · CC BY-SA 4.0

Yellow flags warn drivers of a hazard on that section of track. Drivers are required to reduce speed and are not permitted to overtake while the flags are shown, and an alleged breach is normally referred to the stewards for review. The stewards have discretion over any sanction, which can range from a grid drop to a time penalty depending on what they find. Whether a breach occurred here is a judgement for them, not for the teams involved.

Why the timing matters

Ank Kumar · CC BY-SA 4.0

Sprint qualifying sets the order for the sprint race, and the Singapore weekend runs on compressed timings, so a decision reached after the session lands close to the moment the grid is used. A sanction that moves Verstappen back would change the shape of a race that carries points of its own before the grand prix. It would also shift attention onto the stewards' room at a point in the weekend when teams are still fine-tuning their cars.

What is not yet known

The stewards have not published a decision, and no hearing time has been given. Red Bull have not commented on the alleged infringement, and neither Verstappen nor Hamilton has spoken about it publicly. It is also unclear what, if any, penalty would follow a finding against the Red Bull driver, or how quickly a ruling would arrive. Stewards typically issue their decisions during the event, but nothing about the timetable for this case has been stated.

Where Perez's incident leaves the weekend

Perez's impact with the Turn 5 barrier produced the caution that frames the whole episode, and his front wing damage is the only consequence of it confirmed in reports so far. Whether his session was ended by the contact, and whether his car required further work, has not been established. Those details would matter to his own grid position as much as to the investigation into Verstappen.

What happens next

The next step is a stewards' review of the alleged overtake, after which a decision would be published and any penalty applied. Until that happens, Verstappen's position in the sprint order stands as it was set in qualifying, and Red Bull's preparations for the rest of the Singapore weekend proceed on that basis. Sportsback will update this story if a ruling is issued.