Featured Image Credit: F1/Getty
Topics: George Russell, Max Verstappen, Formula 1
Marcus Chan
Three Formula 1 stars were not spotted at the 2024 end-of-season dinner as the feud between George Russell and Max Verstappen continues.
Heading into the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, all eyes were on the constructor's championship with McLaren and Ferrari in with a chance of winning the title.
However, Verstappen and Russell took centre stage as their war of words got ugly on Thursday during media day.
The feud started last week during the Qatar Grand Prix when Verstappen was handed a one-place grid penalty after being penalised for driving too slowly, with Russell describing the incident as "super dangerous".
Reacting to the penalty, the Red Bull driver slammed Russell's behaviour and stated that he had 'lost all respect' for the Mercedes star.
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The Dutchman then doubled down on his comments on Thursday by saying Russell's behaviour was 'really unacceptable'.
Russell himself then hit back at the four-time F1 champion, labelling him as a 'bully'.
The pair were present at the drivers' dinner, but as Lando Norris revealed on his Instagram post, were kept well apart.
A picture from the dinner showed that Verstappen was sat with the likes of Norris and Oscar Piastri on one end of the table, with Russell on the other end.
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Meanwhile, Aston Martin pair Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll plus Haas driver Kevin Magnussen were nowhere to be seen.
There has been no explanation given on why the trio did not attend the dinner.
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Commenting on the Verstappen and Russell feud, Sky Sports F1 pundit Martin Brundle said: "How I see this is that Max has ramped up the aggression on the track and ramped up playing the victim off the track - and it's working.
"He's got everyone on the run, he's got everyone on edge, whether it's media, whether it's other teams, particularly other drivers, and it's how he goes about his racing."