Max Verstappen says he has "lost all respect" for fellow F1 driver George Russell after the pair clashed in the stewards' room at the Qatar Grand Prix.
Fresh from securing his fourth world title, Verstappen lost pole position for this weekend's Qatar Grand Prix after being hit with a one-place grid penalty following an incident with Russell during the final part of qualifying.
The Dutchman produced an impressive lap to seal pole position but was then summoned to the stewards for driving too slowly in preparation for his fast lap, with Russell calling his driving "super dangerous".
Red Bull's Verstappen ended up winning Sunday's race with ease but the decision to penalise him clearly hit a nerve.
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In fact, the Dutchman has accused Russell of trying to “screw him over hard” in the stewards room after qualifying.
Speaking to Dutch broadcaster Viaplay after the race, he said: “I have a lot of respect for a lot of drivers, but after last night I completely lost that respect for him [Russell]."
He added: “I just thought it was ridiculous how he tried to force a penalty on me. And I was heavily pissed at him for that. He always does it very nicely here in front of the camera, but then when you’re inside with him in person, it’s just a different person.
“I can’t stand that and it’s actually better for him to f*** off. I don’t want to get involved in this.”
Verstappen was asked about the incident in the official FIA press conference and once again, he didn't hold back.
“It wasn’t very enjoyable to see that happen," he said. "The thing is being nice, everything is more or less decided, I didn’t want to screw anyone over and by doing that, being nice, you get a penalty.
“That’s what I tried to explain but it felt like talking to a brick wall. I spoke about valid reasons. I didn’t want to cause a scene into that last corner, [it was] very surprising.
“I was quite surprised with what was going on, very disappointing. And I’ve been in that meeting room many times in my life with people I’ve raced – and I’ve never seen someone trying to screw someone over that hard. I lost all respect.”
Speaking after the incident in qualifying, Mercedes driver Russell said he has no issues with Verstappen.
"No, there's no concerns," he said. "We know Max is a fighter and is aggressive. I expect no difference. I really wanted to go out there and fight with him today like we could have done in the sprint.
"But yesterday in the sprint, he was probably two or three tenths behind us. Today, we were two or three tenths behind him. It just goes to show what a night can do in this sport. It's always on a knife's edge. It's a shame we didn't have the pace when it mattered."
Thoughts on the incident? Let us know in the comments.
Topics: Max Verstappen, George Russell, Mercedes, Formula 1
Jack Kenmare