Despite winning Qatar Grand Prix 2024 marking his 9th win of the season, Max Verstappen has expressed his disappointment and frustration after George Russell lobbied to have the Dutch driver penalized, leading to a tense confrontation that has left Verstappen with "no respect" for his fellow competitor. The incident unfolded after Verstappen was handed an unusual one-place grid penalty for driving unnecessarily slowly during qualifying.
Verstappen Reacts to Russell’s Actions
Verstappen, who was following Fernando Alonso during a slow lap in qualifying, was deemed responsible when Russell nearly collided with him. Both drivers were on slow laps at the time, but the stewards found Verstappen at fault for the near-miss. However, what angered Verstappen the most was not the penalty itself, but the way Russell pushed for the punishment.
“I was quite surprised when sitting there in the stewards room with what was all going on,” Verstappen told reporters after his victory in Qatar. "Honestly, very disappointing, because I think we’re all here. We respect each other a lot and of course, I’ve been in that meeting room many times in my life and my career with people that I’ve raced and I’ve never seen someone trying to screw someone over that hard."
Verstappen on Losing Respect for Russell
Verstappen, who has won four World Championships, stated that he had never experienced such an attempt by a fellow driver to push for a penalty. This led him to openly declare that he had lost all respect for Russell, emphasizing how deeply the situation had affected him.
"That for me, I lost all respect [for Russell], Honestly, very disappointing," Verstappen said.
Verstappen’s Take on the Penalty Decision
Despite his strong feelings towards Russell's actions, Verstappen also expressed his disbelief over the penalty itself. He admitted that while he was shocked by the decision, he was no longer surprised by the unpredictable nature of the FIA’s decisions.
“Honestly, I couldn’t believe that I got it, but in a way, I was also like I’m not surprised anymore in the world that I live in,” Verstappen explained. “So yeah, you’re not happy with it, but at one point also you have to just turn the page.”
The Unusual Penalty and Its Aftermath
Verstappen found the penalty particularly baffling because it was the first time a driver had been penalized for something as unusual as a slow lap. According to him, his actions had been an attempt to be considerate of other drivers, not cause any disruptions, and avoid obstructing anyone preparing for a flying lap. Unfortunately, his effort to "be nice" backfired, resulting in the penalty.
"It wasn’t very enjoyable to see that happen because I think that’s the first time that in the slow lap, someone has been penalized," Verstappen said. "I just tried to be nice, so maybe I shouldn’t be nice. But I was being nice, because we are at the end of the season, everything is more or less decided, especially for me, I didn’t want to screw anyone over to prepare their lap."
Despite explaining his reasoning and pointing out different factors such as cold tyres for other drivers, Verstappen felt his arguments were ignored.
“And by doing that, you know, being nice, basically, you get a penalty,” Verstappen added. “I just felt like I was talking to a brick wall."
Verstappen Reflects on the Situation
The situation was particularly perplexing to Verstappen because of the complexity of the scenario. He noted that there were multiple factors at play, such as drivers with colder tyres needing to push harder. In his view, his actions were justifiable, yet the penalty still stood.
“I think I really spoke about valid reasons for what happened and it was clear cut that around me, there were different scenarios going on as well, with people having colder tyres and stuff, so they have to push anyway, and I didn’t want to then cause a scene into the last corner,” he explained. “So, very, very surprising.”
