The Red Bull driver was on a flying lap in the early stages of FP2 at Zandvoort when the session was red-flagged af🦄ter Lewis Hamilton stopped on track.

Onboard camera footage 💃showed Verstappen passing Lance Stroll between Turns 10 and 11 while the Aston Martin🥀 driver was on a slow lap.

Just as Verstappe❀n was closing up to Stroll to make the pass, the light panel on the left-hand side of the circuit tur☂ned red.

Usually, drivers would be handed a grid penalty for such an offence. At last year’s Styr🙈ian Grand Prix, Lando Norris received a three-place grid drop for overta🐽king under yellow flags.

But the stewards decided to take n🍎o further action after feeling Verstappen reacted appropriately given th🥀e proximity and speed difference of the two cars.

“The race management system indicates that the red flag and red lights were initiated at 15:10:12," the stewards noted. "When [Verstappen] passed light panel 14 (which is prior to the point of the overtake) it was not illuminated. As [Verst♌appen] approached the rear of the car (within a few metres) of [Stroll], the red light on [Verstappe🌜n’s] steering wheel activated. At this point [Verstappen’s] speed was 260kph and [Stroll’s] was 110kph, a delta of 150kph.

“At this point, telemetry shows that [Verstappen] immediately lifted and braked. Becau🔜se of the speed delta, [Verstappen’s] momentum c🌠arried him past [Stroll].

“Simultaneously the light panel 15 (showing red) became vis🧔ible to [Verstappen]. At approxim🐽ately 15:10:17 the team radioed [Verstappen] “red flag”.

“It is our conclusion that the driver of car 33🍃 took every reasonable action to comply with the regulations in that he immediately reduced speed in a safe manner at the earliest opportunity upon the first indication of the red flag, even before a red flag or red light panel was visible to him, and that this satisfies the requirements of the Code.”