Russell accuses Verstappen of ‘crossing a line’

George Russell has accused Max Verstappen of “crossing a line” following the fallout that has come from the stewards’ hearing over a qualifying incident between them last time out in Qatar.

Both drivers were summoned to the stewards on Saturday night as Verstappen was investigated for driving unnecessarily slowly on a cooldown lap in Q3, with Russell feeling he had been impeded by the Red Bull man. The Dutchman was subsequently handed a one-place grid penalty, demoting him down to second on the grid, while Russell was promoted up into pole position.

Verstappen went on to take victory in Sunday’s Grand Prix – with Russell crossing the line in fourth – but in the post-race press conference the four-time world champion stated that he had “lost all respect” for the Mercedes driver.

“I've been in that [stewards’] meeting room many times in my life, in my career, with people that I’ve raced and I've never seen someone trying to screw someone over that hard,” Verstappen said. “And that for me… I lost all respect.”

With the paddock now assembled for media day at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Russell was quizzed for the first time on those comments in Qatar. “For me, we fight hard on the track, we fight hard in the stewards’ [room] and it’s never personal,” the 26-year-old said.

“And what happened at the weekend, from my side to Max, was not personal, the same way as in the race, Max telling his team to check for Lando [Norris] with the yellow flag is not personal from Max to Lando. It’s part of racing, but the words he said [are] totally unnecessary. He’s crossed a line and I’m not going to accept it, so somebody has to stand up to someone who thinks he’s above the law.”

2024 Qatar GP Qualifying: Russell frustrated with Verstappen after close call in Q3

Giving his take on what happened in the stewards’ room, Russell continued: “We went into the stewards’ [room], for the first five minutes I didn’t say a word because they were only talking to Max and he was already angry, swearing at the stewards, and then when they asked for my opinion I told them exactly the facts.

“I was following my delta time – we all have this lap time we have to follow. They also say if you’re driving slow you need to move off the line. I wasn’t trying to get Max a penalty – at this point in qualifying I was in first position, I don’t even think Max was in second position at this point.

“I was just trying to prepare my lap, he was 20 seconds too slow on his lap, he was parked in the middle, and I didn’t argue with the stewards. But Max was very angry that I didn’t support him, because he was expecting me to say, ‘No problem, what Max did was okay’.

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“It wasn’t crazy dangerous, and was the penalty harsh? Maybe it was a little bit harsh, but these are the rules. We all have the rules and we all have to follow it. I would love to go 20 seconds slower on my preparation lap to get my tyres ready, but I didn’t.

“I went to speak with him on Sunday morning, it was myself, Max, Checo [Perez] and Carlos [Sainz]. We almost laughed about it, but I could see in his eyes that he was angry, and the words that he said, he meant it. For me that was very surprising.

“I haven’t got him disqualified, it almost feels like he expects a double standard, and if it’s not going his way then there’s no way, and that’s not how the sport works.

ABU DHABI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - DECEMBER 05: Max Verstappen of the Netherlands and Oracle Red — Verstappen has come under fire from Russell as the fallout continues from their post-qualifying stewards' hearing in Qatar

“I’ve known Max for 12 years, I’ve respected him all of this time, but now I’ve lost respect for him because we’re all fighting on track and it’s never personal. Now he’s made it personal, and someone needs to stand up to a bully like this. So far, people let him get away with murder.”

When it was put to him that Verstappen had accused him of “lying” during the stewards’ hearing, Russell responded: “Not really, what he was doing was pretty clear. He was going too slow and he was on the racing line, and we all have the rules to follow and he doesn’t follow it.

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“I find his comments pretty ironic when he comes out and says, ‘I’m going to purposefully crash into you, I’m going to put you on your f*****g head in the wall’ – for me that isn’t acceptable and he’s gone beyond the line here, and I’m not going to accept it. So somebody’s got to stand up to a guy like this before it gets out of control.”

And reflecting further on the matter, the three-time race winner added: “All of this is racing, but he’s felt the need to take it personal. I have no idea why he’s done that, and he cannot deal with adversity.

“Whenever anything is not going his way, he lashes out with unnecessary anger and borderline violence. We’ve seen it in Brazil in the past with [Esteban] Ocon, we saw it in ’21 with Lewis [Hamilton], in Mexico with Lando, first race of the year in Budapest when he didn’t have the most dominant car, crashes into Lewis, slamming his whole team.

“That is not a guy who I respect, and I wish he would be a better role model.”