Ex-Red Bull driver reveals trigger in Max Verstappen’s fall out with George Russell
Former F1 driver Karun Chandhok shed light on what potentially led to Max Verstappen's outburst on George Russell in Qatar.
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Max Verstappen and George Russell (via IMAGO)
Max Verstappen was furious after Qualifying in Qatar last weekend. The Dutch driver blamed George Russell for a one-place grid drop after he secured pole position. Now, former F1 driver Karun Chandhok has explained Verstappen’s perspective.
The four-time world champion lashed out at Russell, claiming that he had lost all respect for the Mercedes driver. Max Verstappen even mentioned that he felt provoked after he was handed the penalty by the FIA. Nevertheless, the 27-year-old turned things around and went on to win the Qatar GP.
Chandhok revealed that he had gone through comments made by Verstappen and others in the paddock over George Russell‘s conversation with the Stewards. The former Red Bull driver asserted that for Max Verstappen, it seemed like the Briton was overexaggerating the situation which led to the penalty. The reigning world champion was penalized for driving unnecessarily slowly in front of the Mercedes in the session.
I think just listening to what Max was saying, and speaking to a couple of people who were around there, it sounds like he thought George was overexaggerating the point.
Karun Chandhok told Sky F1
Karun Chandhok defends Max Verstappen over George Russell fiasco
Chandhok insisted that the reality was quite different than what Russell allegedly told race control. The Indian driver emphasized that both Max Verstappen and George Russell were on slow laps. Subsequently, Verstappen’s driving did not make any difference to the timing sheets in Qualifying.
In reality, it was two drivers on slow laps and it didn’t really affect anything. It didn’t affect grid positions. It didn’t change anything.
Karun Chandhok added
It seems that tensions between Verstappen and Russell are likely to rise this weekend. The four-time world champion is known for his straight forward attitude on the grid. This could potentially lead to an intense on-track battle on Sunday in Yas Marina.
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Armaan Agarwal
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