Verstappen admits Russell F1 Spanish GP clash “not right and shouldn’t have happened”

Max Verstappen has admitted his clash with George Russell during the Formula 1 Spanish Grand Prix “was not right and shouldn’t have happened”.

The Red Bull driver finished 10th at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya after being hit with a 10-second penalty for the incident and was also given three penalty points on his licence which puts him on the edge of a race ban.

Verstappen’s race unravelled when he lost third place to Charles Leclerc following a safety car restart on lap 61.

The Red Bull driver then had to defend from a Russell divebomb down the inside of Turn 1 and the two drivers banged wheels, with the Dutchman forced into using the escape road which kept him ahead.

Verstappen believed he was in the right on both occasions, yet Red Bull still instructed him to hand fourth place to Russell, which led to his clash with the Mercedes driver at Turn 5 on lap 64.

“We had an exciting strategy and good race in Barcelona, till the safety car came out,” Verstappen posted on Instagram.

“Our tyre choice to the end and some moves after the safety car restart fuelled my frustration, leading to a move that was not right and shouldn’t have happened.

“I always give everything out there for the team and emotions can run high. You win some together, you lose some together. See you in Montreal.”

The post was a change in mindset from Verstappen, who, fuelled by frustration during the race, was unhappy at being asked to give the place to Russell’s Mercedes.

Gianpiero Lambiase, Verstappen’s race engineer radioed: “Max, can you let Russell through, please? Let Russell through.”

“No, I was ahead, mate,” replied Verstappen. “What the f***?”

“My advice is to let him through.”

“Mate, I was ahead. He just ran me off the road.”

“But that’s the rules. That’s the rules we have to play with. It’s a shame, but that’s the rules.”

Verstappen appeared to slow down and let the Mercedes by on the approach to Turn 5, then accelerated again before Russell was fully past, striking the Mercedes at the rear.

His social media response a day after the event came amid widespread criticism for the move, with Russell claiming it was “very deliberate”.

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, George Russell, Mercedes

Photo by: Peter Fox / Getty Images

“It’s something that I’ve seen numerous times in sim racing and on iRacing. Never have I seen it in a Formula 1 race,” Russell, who finished fourth, said.

“We’ve put our lives on the line. We’re fortunate the cars are as safe as they are these days. We shouldn’t take it for granted.

“As I said, it’s down to the stewards to determine if it’s deliberate or not. If they do think it’s deliberate, then they need to have a hard question.”

Elsewhere, former world champion Nico Rosberg said Verstappen should have been disqualified from the race for the move.

“It looked like a very intentional retaliation,” the 2016 champion told Sky Sports F1. “Wait for the opponent, go ramming into him, just like you felt the other guy rammed into you at Turn 1.

“That’s something which is extremely unacceptable and I think the rules would be a black flag, yes. If you wait for your opponent to bang into him, that’s a black flag.”

Meanwhile, Red Bull team principal Christian Horner was obviously more defensive of his driver when asked about the incident in his post-race media briefing.

“Look, he was obviously upset because, first of all, he’s had Leclerc take a swipe at him on the straight. And then he’s got dive-bombed at Turn 1 by George. And the way that these regulations are now, it’s all about where that front axle is,” he said.

Charles Leclerc, Ferrari, Lando Norris, McLaren, Oscar Piastri, McLaren, Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images via Getty Images

“And so you’ve got… And the drivers know the rules and they’re the rules that they’re playing to. Now, the argument is, was George under control at that point in time? Would he have made the corner? Now, we’ve seen so many occasions this year where penalties have been given.

“We’ve seen it been noted. We’ve seen it gone to the stewards. The next thing is, you’re expecting to get a penalty. So that’s why it was, OK, do you know what? We’re going to have to give this place up.”

Given the three penalty points, Verstappen will have to keep his nose clean for at least the next two rounds, but he is on thin ice until late in the year.

He gained his first two penalty points in the current rolling 12-month period after last year’s Austrian GP on 30 June, having collided with Norris at Turn 3. But even after those points ‘expire’ this year he will still be three points away from a race ban.

Verstappen will remain in that position until after 27 October, when the two points he received for pushing Norris off-track in Mexico will expire.