George Russell takes a cheeky dig at David Croft following Red Bull’s Sky Sports boycott in Las Vegas

George Russell

George Russell is one of the most exciting young talents in Formula 1 today. He has proven his skills time and time again in underperforming machinery at Williams, following which he was promoted to Mercedes. However, it’s not just his driving talent that the Brit is known for, the 24-year-old can have his fair share of moments sparking some trouble, on and off track.

At the Mexican Grand Prix, Max Verstappen refused to give an interview to Sky Sport’s Ted Kravitz as the Dutch driver called out the reporter for being disrespectful. Soon the Red Bull team decided to boycott Sky Sports, with neither the drivers nor the team members answering questions asked by the broadcast giant. The boycott is something never seen before in the sport and has caused immense controversy in the paddock.

YouTube video — George Russell is a person who loves banter even when it is on himself

Tensions have risen over the last few days after Ted Kravitz even received hate comments on social media, something which is unacceptable and inhumane. Thus it is a topic of seriousness over how F1 media can move forward and as well as the teams discussing the media’s behavior. It can be said that as time goes on, the situation may indeed cool down but for now, we witness a heavy backlash.

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“I have special permission” – Crofty plays in the joke of George Russell amidst an uneasy Sergio Perez

Russell’s joke could have created a problem for Perez if the Mexican had not managed it properly

At the Las Vegas Grand Prix launch on Saturday, David Croft was on stage with George Russell, Lewis Hamilton, and Sergio Perez. But before Crofty could even ask a question, Checo, George interrupted and asked the F1 presenter, “Are you allowed to ask red bull drivers questions Crofty?” referring to Red Bull’s boycott of Sky Sports. This brought in some cheer not from the crowds while the drivers and the anchor gave an uncomfortable laugh. This video was posted on Twitter, allowing the whole internet to witness this amusing scenario.

Croft played in on the comment and said, “I have special permission tonight” as he tried to control his laughter, Perez dealt well with the joke and didn’t seem offended when asked if he was allowed to answer, the Mexican replied, “They’re not here,” referring to Christian Horner and Helmut Marko. The anchor too tried to ease the situation and said, “What happens in Vegas, Stays in Vegas” thus ending the awkwardness in the air. David then proceeded to ask questions.

Russell definitely enjoyed instigating the situation and making his rival uncomfortable, but Perez managed the situation gracefully making sure that no eyebrows are raised or his team is forced to handle a PR nightmare. Such banter is of course lovely to see and is appreciated by us, the fans but we highly doubt if Dr Marko or Christian Horner would be so pleased. Let us hope we don’t see any more trouble between Mercedes and Red Bull than there already is.