MONTREAL — Max Verstappen has fired back at further questions about his Formula One race ban risk, saying the topic is “very childish” and “really pissing me off.”
Verstappen moved within 1 penalty point of a one-race ban after colliding with Mercedes rival George Russell in the closing stages of the Spanish Grand Prix, a move Russell said “felt deliberate” at the time.
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Verstappen will not drop any penalty points from his super license until after the Austrian Grand Prix at the end of the month, per F1’s rules on its 12-point ban threshold, meaning he needs to avoid incidents that might result in a sanction from the stewards through the current weekend in Canada and the following event in Austria.
The Red Bull driver made clear Thursday in Montreal that he had no plans to change his hard racing approach despite the ban threat. He conceded it would be “not ideal” to miss a race as he chases the McLaren drivers in the world title standings.
Verstappen and Russell will now start side by side on the front row of the grid for Sunday’s Canadian Grand Prix after Russell grabbed pole from the Dutchman by 0.160 seconds with his final lap in qualifying.
After jumping out of the car, Russell made a cheeky reference to Verstappen’s situation in his post-qualifying interview with F1’s host broadcast, saying he had “a few more penalty points to play with,” drawing a reaction from the crowd.
Verstappen then seemed frustrated by a question asked to Russell in the news conference that followed, initially giving a one-word answer to the first question he was asked.
He then interrupted the host when he started asking about penalty points, saying: “I don’t need to hear it again. It’s really pissing me off.
“I mean, you speaking about it, on Thursday (in the media session), it’s such a waste of time. It’s very childish. That’s why I also don’t want to say too much, because … it’s really annoying, this world that we live in.”
Verstappen has previously stated that he does not feel he can speak his mind about matters in F1 due to concerns about a potential sanction from the FIA, the motorsport governing body.
The FIA ordered him to conduct community service on its behalf last year after swearing in a news conference, which he ultimately served in Rwanda before the end-of-year prize-giving ceremony. The FIA has since rowed back on its clampdown on F1 driver expression.
But when the penalty points topic was brought up again later in the news conference, Verstappen responded to the question by only giving two thumbs up to the journalist who asked it and said off-mic: “Thumbs-up. I feel good.”
Russell and championship leader Oscar Piastri, who will start the race in third for McLaren, said they did not expect Verstappen would race any differently Sunday.
“I don’t think any driver goes out looking to crash into somebody and get penalty points on your license,” Russell said.
“Max is one of the best drivers. There’s no reason for him to race any differently, and I’m not sitting here thinking he’s going to give us more room. If anything, probably the opposite — to try and prove a point. So, I’ll be keeping an eye.
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“Ultimately, we’re all here to win. You’re not going to do something that would jeopardize yourself in the race.”
Piastri echoed comments he made Thursday, saying: “I’m not going to race any differently. Not going to take any less risk, any more risk. I’m not going to do anything different. I’ll race the way I always race him.”
Verstappen has been downbeat about his chances of defending his championship this year, given McLaren’s current pace advantage over Red Bull. He trails Piastri by 49 points at the top of the standings going into Sunday’s race.
Asked what would be a good result for Red Bull in Montreal, Verstappen said: “I think being on the podium, trying to be as competitive as we can be, trying to get the most out of our car.
“We’ll find out after the race if we did so. Hopefully, we’ll just be good on tire management.”
(Photo: Clive Rose / Getty Images)
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