George Russell breaks silence after Max Verstappen claims he ‘wants nothing to do with him’ following Qatar GP

George Russell has spoken out after Formula One rival Max Verstappen admitted that he had lost all respect for the British driver after the Qatar Grand Prix.

Having won his fourth consecutive world title in Las Vegas the week before, Verstappen claimed pole position in Qatar Grand Prix but was forced to start in second after being handed a one-place grid penalty for an incident with Russell during the final part of qualifying.

Although the Dutch driver went on to win the race on Sunday, he was outspoken about how Russell behaved while trying to get him penalised, saying that the Brit was a 'different person' behind closed doors.

And now, Russell has finally spoken out since his rival's bold claims with a post on social media.

After being awarded pole position after Verstappen's penalty, Russell failed to convert it into a podium finish at the Qatar Grand Prix, ending the race in fourth behind Oscar Piastri, Charles Leclerc and Verstappen.

Posting on Instagram after the race, Russell wrote: 'P4. Rollercoaster of a weekend between the strengths in quali and sprint, then a very tough race. We’ll regroup and take the learnings. We’re hungry for more.

"Season finale in Abu Dhabi, up next."

Russell's post comes after Verstappen accused him of behaving differently in front of the cameras and said that he had lost all respect for the Mercedes driver for how he acted after the qualifying session on Saturday.

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].

"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.”

George Russell and Max Verstappen have clashed both on and off the track on several occasions since the British driver joined Mercedes in 2022. (Image: Getty)

Asked to speak about the incident further during official FIA press conference, Verstappen added: “It wasn’t very enjoyable to see that happen,

"I didn’t want to screw anyone over and by doing that, being nice, you get a penalty.

“I didn’t want to cause a scene into that last corner, [it was] very surprising.

“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.”