The ongoing war of words between Max Verstappen and George Russell shows no signs of slowing down after the world champion labeled his rival a "loser" and a "liar" following allegations made by the Mercedes driver after the Qatar Grand Prix.
The latest chapter of the dispute began after Russell accused Verstappen of threatening to "put me on my f---ing head in the wall" ahead of the Qatar race. Speaking ahead of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Verstappen denied making such comments, describing Russell's version of events as an exaggeration.
"That's not true; I didn’t say it like that," Verstappen said. "He's exaggerating again. Do you know what I can’t stand? The way he attacks me unacceptably with the stewards and then acts like nothing happened the next day, patting me on the shoulder. I think, ‘Stay away from me.’ He invents all sorts of nonsense. With me, you always get the same: here, at home, with the stewards -- I don’t change. You can’t say the same about everyone. But I’m not surprised by him."
The Roots of the Row
The feud between the two drivers can be traced back to an incident during qualifying in Qatar, where the pair nearly collided while preparing for their laps. Verstappen was investigated by the stewards for driving unnecessarily slowly, prompting both drivers to be summoned. Russell, according to Verstappen, made sure that a penalty was issued, dropping Verstappen one position on the grid and promoting Russell to pole position.
Russell later claimed that it was after this investigation that Verstappen made the threatening comments.
Russell Calls Verstappen a Bully
Ahead of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Russell escalated the war of words, labeling Verstappen a bully and stating that only his Mercedes teammate, Lewis Hamilton, had ever stood up to Verstappen in their intense 2021 title battle.
"I find it all quite ironic seeing as Saturday night he said he was going to purposely go out of his way to crash into me and 'put me on my f---ing head in the wall,'" Russell said. "So to question somebody’s integrity as a person, while saying comments like that the day before, I find is very ironic, and I’m not going to sit here and accept it. People have been bullied by Max for years now, and you can’t question his driving abilities. But he cannot deal with adversity."
Verstappen Responds: Russell is a "Backstabber"
When Verstappen was made aware of Russell's accusations, he fired back, calling his rival a "backstabber" and accusing him of fabricating stories. "Yeah, but George is a backstabber. The way he brings up all this nonsense -- he’s just a loser. He lies and cobbles things together that don’t add up. I only voiced my opinion about his behavior with the stewards. Clearly, he couldn’t handle that," Verstappen responded.
The tension between the two drivers continues to escalate, and all eyes will be on them as the final race of the 2024 season in Abu Dhabi gets underway this weekend.
