George Russell and Max Verstappen are in the midst of an intense feud (Image: Getty)
There was a time not too long ago when actually wanted to spend time with away from the race track – but the latter would always decline the offer. Fast forward to the current day, and the world champion is currently locked in a bitter feud with the Brit following their altercation at the Qatar GP.
Russell, 26, infuriated Verstappen when he reported the Dutchman for impeding him during the qualifiers and then proceeded to persuade the stewards to punish the star, who would then be that stripped him of pole position. At the drivers’ press conference for this weekend’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Russell took things one step further by claiming Verstappen threatened
It now appears their relationship, if there really was any, is beyond repair. The days of Verstappen wanting to hang out with Russell now seem ancient history.
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In the summer, Verstappen jokingly complained that Russell does not make any time for anybody but himself. While the drivers are all fierce rivals on the track and in the paddocks, it’s not uncommon for them to spend time with each other outside of competition – as shown by the drivers’ annual dinner which 16 of the 20 attended this week.
At the time, Verstappen said him and Russell always struggled to align their schedules. And the driver was not the only one who could not catch the ace at the right time.
duo and Oscar Piastri also said that Russell was a hard person to pin down. In an interview with Canal, the latter said that Russell’s intense and repetitive gym schedules often filled up his calendar.
Piastri said: “I’ve seen George post [online] a few times when he is in the gym.” And Norris added: “George is the guy who goes to the gym and makes sure he posts on ‘look, I’m in the gym’.”
Verstappen found Russell to be a hard person to pin down (Image: Getty)
Verstappen also stressed how Russell’s busy gym schedules would prove a problem when he said: “We have invited him many times to padel, but sometimes his training schedule didn’t allow him to go to padel.”
Considering the pair’s seismic row in the Middle East, it can be assumed that game of padel will not be taking place any time soon. Looking back on the encounter, Verstappen admitted he felt shocked by the level in which he claims Russell tried to get him punished.
Looking back this week on the incident, Verstappen said: “I was quite surprised when sitting there in the stewards’ room [about] what was all going on. Honestly, [it was] 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, in my career, with people that I’ve raced and I’ve never seen someone trying to screw someone over that hard. And that for me… I lost all respect.”