Max Verstappen was not investigated for potentially being positioned outside his grid box during the Australian Grand Prix, despite some Formula 1 fans believing he might have been.
Fans watching the race in Melbourne were treated to three different race starts on Sunday. After the usual start there was an early red flag which saw the cars take to the grid again to get going, before the same process happened yet again just two laps before the end.
A few photos taken from the stand on the start-finish straight began to do the rounds of how Verstappen was positioned in his grid box. Some fans suggested that the Dutchman might have been too far forward.
Esteban Ocon and Fernando Alonso have already been penalised with time penalties for similar offences this season. But no investigation was carried out into Verstappen's case as it was decided that he was not far enough forward to have broken the rules.
The contact patch of his tyres was deemed to have been touching the white line of the grid box rather than being beyond it. As a result, the Red Bull racer's positioning on the grid was legal.
Karun Chandhok explained why that was the case as he reviewed on-board camera footage on Sky Sports. He said: "He's in his grid box, in first gear, and then he's moved actually a little bit further forward and then done the launch.
"If you look at it from on board with Lewis, you can see Max parked in position and then he moves. People at home must be wondering, 'Hang on a second, has he moved out of his grid box?' However, even in that second movement, his tyres is still making contact with the line. So he's still on the line and it's okay."
Verstappen won the race, which ended under yellow flag conditions after huge crash following that second race restart. Only 12 drivers finished an action-packed race in Melbourne, with Lewis Hamilton securing his first podium of the season by finishing second.
Alonso was spun around in that huge pile-up towards the end but was allowed to line up in formation again for the final safety car restart as he was still going under his own power. He finished third, while Carlos Sainz was demoted from fourth to last of the finishers due to a time penalty for causing his fellow Spaniard's spin.
