Max Verstappen has offered a veiled apology following his controversial clash with George Russell at the Spanish Grand Prix, acknowledging his behavior “was not right and shouldn’t have happened.”
Verstappen, the reigning world champion, found himself embroiled in late-race drama that saw him collide with Mercedes’ George Russell, ultimately leading to a significant penalty and placing him on the brink of a race ban.
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Max Verstappen and his penalty-causing action
The incident unfolded after a safety car restart, following a risky tire move to put Verstappen on the hard compound, which he felt fuelled his frustration. Despite believing he was in the right after an initial tangle with Russell at Turn 1, Verstappen became enraged after his team radioed him to yield fourth place to Russell. Verstappen initially resisted, arguing he was ahead. His race engineer reiterated the instruction, stating it was the rules. Verstappen then appeared to slow to let George Russell by, but accelerated again, making contact with the Mercedes.
Stewards handed Verstappen a 10-second time penalty for causing the collision, which dropped him to 10th place in the final standings, costing Red Bull points. More critically, he received three penalty points on his FIA super license. This brings his total to 11 points accrued over the past 12 months. Accumulating 12 points within a year triggers a race suspension. The latest such race suspension occurred in 2024, when Haas driver Kevin Magnussen missed the 2024 Azerbaijan Grand Prix due to reaching 12 points.
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George Russell and F1 react to the incident and penalty
George Russell himself felt the move was deliberate and that Verstappen had only hurt his team and himself.
“It’s a bit of a shame because Max is clearly one of the best drivers in the world, but maneuvers like that are just totally unnecessary and sort of lets him down,” Russell said after the race. “It’s a shame for all the young kids looking up, aspiring to be Formula 1 drivers.”
Former world champion Nico Rosberg went further, suggesting the maneuver warranted a disqualification, calling it an intentional act of retaliation.
“It looked like a very intentional retaliation,” Rosberg told Sky Sports. “Wait for the opponent, go ramming into him, just like you felt the other guy rammed into you at Turn 1. That’s something which is extremely unacceptable and I think the rules would be a black flag, yes.”
Verstappen’s initial post-race reaction was flippant, questioning if his actions mattered when asked if they were intentional. However, his social media statement the following day indicated a shift in perspective.
With 11 points, Verstappen must avoid any penalty points at the next event in Canada on June 15th to prevent a ban for the Austrian GP on June 29th. He will remain just one point away from a ban until some of his older penalty points expire later in the year.
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