Could this special dossier help Verstappen escape a potential race ban?

The clash with George Russell in Barcelona has cost Verstappen dearly. Not only did the Red Bull driver fall back to a meagre tenth place because of his penalty, but he also received three additional penalty points on his license.

Therefore, this weekend in Canada he cannot receive any penalty points on his license, because otherwise he will be suspended for the Austrian Grand Prix.

Singer works as a steward in several racing categories, including Formula 1. During the next race weekend in Austria, he will be in action as a steward. He told Krone Zeitung that there is no official list of punishments that stewards must adhere to.

"But there are guidelines for the stewards," continued the Austrian. "That is an internal document, I get it only when I'm on site."

In this dossier you will not find how many penalty points a driver should receive for offense X or offense Y. What you will find, however, is a list of the regulations and decisions that have been made in the past. These are guidelines, emphasises Singer. "One case is not like another."

The list is reviewed every year, based on feedback from the drivers. For example, the Austrian explained that the idea of penalizing 'steering under braking' came from the drivers. "The stewards didn't come up with that."

However, the stewards are still free to hand out penalties the way they think is appropriate.

Singer had already stated that the stewards are not obligated to distribute penalty points, not even for clumsy or 'stupid' actions, but that decision depends entirely on the three stewards serving that weekend. This could potentially work in Verstappen's favour in Canada. This could be make or break for the defending world champion, given the situation he is in.