George Russell responds harshly to Verstappen’s aggressive behavior, accusing the Dutch driver of intimidating others for years and questioning his actions.
Russell chose to respond publicly to Max Verstappen’s attacks, which were violent towards him after the Qatar Grand Prix, explaining that he had lost all respect for the Mercedes F1 driver following his statements to the stewards. However, Russell decided to reveal the concerning interactions he had with the Dutch driver.
“I find it quite ironic, given that on Saturday night, he said he would deliberately do everything he could to hit me and ‘flip my head and put it in the wall,'” said Russell.
“So it’s very ironic to question someone’s integrity as a person when he made comments like that the night before, and I’m not going to sit here and accept it.”
“Max has been intimidating people for years. You can’t question his driving ability, but he doesn’t know how to handle adversity. Every time something goes against him, like Jeddah 2021, Brazil 2021, he loses control.”
“This year, in Budapest, during the first race where the car wasn’t dominant, he hit Lewis, attacked his team… For me, those comments on Saturday night and Sunday were totally disrespectful and unnecessary.”
“Because what happens on the track, we fight hard, that’s part of racing. What happens in the stewards’ room, you fight hard, but it’s never personal. But he’s gone too far now.”
And he revealed that the Dutch driver attacked first: “It’s funny, because before I even said a word to the stewards, he was swearing at them. He was so angry even before I spoke, and in the end, there’s no need to lie. The facts are the facts. He was going too slowly.”
Russell reveals that the worst comments from his rival didn’t happen in the stewards’ office, but after they left the room: “He told me privately, after we came out of the stewards’ office.”
“He said, ‘I don’t know why you want to screw me over like this, you’re disappointing me so much. I wasn’t even going to race tomorrow, I was going to let you pass, but now, if I have to, I’ll deliberately turn your head around and put you in the wall.’ So I don’t understand why he was so unnecessarily aggressive and violent about it.”
Verstappen “thinks he’s above the law”
Russell decided to speak out about Verstappen’s language and threats after seeing his rival’s comments, which were further elaborated on this Thursday in Abu Dhabi. The Briton wants to challenge the sense of impunity Verstappen feels.
“I’m speaking out because he’s spoken out in the media, and I feel like he’s disrespected me as a driver. I’ve known him for 12 years, we respected each other. We’ve never had any collisions,” continued Russell, though he forgot a violent altercation in Baku in 2023 after a clash.
“Max is a year older than me, so we only crossed paths once in 2011, but we’ve never really had much of a relationship. But we have a man at the top of this sport who feels above the law, and I don’t think that’s right.”
“I admire his battles on track, and when he’s tough and aggressive. But what we saw at the end of the 2021 season, or what we saw in Mexico with Lando, weren’t just hard and aggressive moves. It was ‘win or die’ and saying ‘I’m willing to take this guy out.'”
“I don’t think this is the way we should be racing. Honestly, I just want to set the record straight. There are double standards in the rules, and he thinks he’s above everyone. So it’s not me trying to assert my leadership style or anything else.”
“It’s just that someone went out and called me a ‘two-faced bastard,’ and he’s entitled to his own opinions. But to go out and say that publicly, and criticize me publicly, I’m just not going to accept it, and I’m going to tell people what the reality is.”
“He pushes his limits every week, and in 95% of cases, it’s amazing to watch, and I respect him for that 95%. But some incidents have gone unpunished. Maybe that’s why he thinks he can get away with it. But that’s not the world we live in, and actions have consequences.”
“It can’t continue like this.”
Russell is fed up with Verstappen’s behavior, and he claims that others within Red Bull have also had enough. He attributes departures from the Milton Keynes team to the Dutchman’s conduct: “It can’t continue like this. For me, this whole situation with him and his own team is interesting.”
“They’re doing everything they can to get Horner out of Red Bull, but as soon as the first race came where he wasn’t competitive, he attacked his team, and I know for a fact that the following week, a quarter of his engineering team were sending their CVs to Mercedes, McLaren, and Aston.”
“So I don’t respect someone who doesn’t appreciate those who gave him the chance to perform, because in the last 12 races, he’s had a normally competitive car and has fought like I, Lewis [Hamilton], Charles [Leclerc], Carlos [Sainz], Lando, and [Oscar] Piastri have. And that’s how it should be.”
“I think we all need to set an example. He’s been the most important and most successful man in this sport for the last few years. He can do whatever he wants in his own affairs, but when he starts making comments like he did about me on Sunday night, I’m not going to sit here and accept it.”
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Russell Slams Verstappen: “He’s Been Intimidating” Russell Slams Verstappen: “He’s Been Intimidating” Russell Slams Verstappen: “He’s Been Intimidating”
