05 May 2023 , 07:05
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George Russell took aim at Max Verstappen for his "pathetic" response to their on-track tussle in Azerbaijan last weekend.
The pair made contact on the first lap of the Sprint race in Baku, leading to some angry shouting over the radio from Verstappen. And he was not done there, confronting the Mercedes racer after the end of the Sprint to complain about the collision and call the Brit a "d***head".
Russell brushed off that insult at the time and remained cool about it when speaking to reporters on Thursday in Miami. But he used some much stronger words when asked about the incident in a Sky Sports interview.
Speaking to Ted Kravitz, he accused Verstappen of hypocrisy and said: "It was all a little bit pathetic. I think something you learn as a kid is if you're going to give something you've got to be willing to take it as well.
"He's had his fair share of giving moves like that and being tough and hard at racing and it's a little bit poor to see how he sort of spat his dummy out when it was the first time he probably got something back in the same regard.
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"From my side, there was nothing really to say. I thought it was good racing, exciting racing and that's the only thing that happened that weekend. We're both drivers, we've both been in the sport a long time now and we have plenty of experience. We'll have a chat, everything is fine, move on and I guess we'll laugh about it one day."
Max Verstappen confronted George Russell after a collision in Baku (Formula 1 via Getty Images)Earlier on, in the official FIA press conference, Russell had vowed not to change a thing about the way that he drives despite Verstappen's angry reaction. "I will continue racing the same way as I always would," he told reporters.
"A lot has been said about that coming together but, from my side, it was pretty straightforward. I went for a move, got the move done and moved on. Obviously he was pretty upset about it but that's racing and these things happen. We're all here to fight."
Meanwhile, Verstappen insisted there was no bad blood between the two of them as he clarified his relationship with the man he called "Princess George" a few days ago. "Maybe that's what people would like to hear but, no, it's absolutely fine," said the Dutchman.