George Russell says Max Verstappen threatened to ‘put me on my head in the wall’

ABU DHABI – George Russell on Dec 5 accused Max Verstappen of threatening to deliberately crash into him, after the Dutchman refused to back down over his criticism of the Mercedes driver.

The Briton blamed the four-time world champion for blocking him dangerously during qualifying at the Qatar Grand Prix last week, a claim that resulted in a stewards’ investigation and Verstappen losing pole position to Russell.

The Red Bull driver said ahead of this weekend’s season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix that Russell had lied to the stewards and that he had “no regrets” over his comments in Doha, where he said he had “lost all respect” for the Briton.

Russell hit back at Verstappen’s latest tirade, saying the four-time world champion was a bully who threatened to crash into him on purpose.

“I find it all quite ironic considering (that on) Saturday night he said he’s going to purposefully go out of his way to crash into me and, quote, ‘Put me on my f*****g head in the wall’,” said the Mercedes driver.

“So to question someone’s integrity as a person while saying comments like that the day before, I find very ironic.

“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 can’t deal with adversity.

“Whenever anything has gone against him... he lashes out. Budapest this year, the very first race his car wasn’t dominant, crashing into Lewis, slamming his team.

“For me, those comments on Saturday night and Sunday were totally disrespectful and unnecessary because what happens on track – and we fight hard – it’s part of racing... But he’s taken it too far now.”

Verstappen has denied the “put your head in the wall” remarks to Dutch media, according to Sky Sports.

Verstappen went on to claim victory in Qatar from second on the grid alongside Russell who, he claimed, had persuaded the stewards to penalise him.

“I have no regrets at all, because I meant everything I said,” said Verstappen.

“If I had to do it again, maybe I would have said even more!

“Knowing the outcome of the race, I still can’t believe that someone can be like that in the stewards’ room.

“For me, that was so unacceptable because, I mean, we are all racing drivers.

“We have a lot of respect for each other. We even play sports together, travel together... and, of course, you have moments where you get together and crash or whatever when you are not happy...

“I just never expected someone to really try and actively get someone a penalty that badly and lying about what I was doing, but it clearly had an influence on them.”

Russell insisted he would not attempt to clear the air with his rival, saying it was Verstappen’s “problem to deal with”.

“You can go beyond the line in making a slight misjudgment, but going out of your way to say you’ll purposefully crash into someone and put them on their head is beyond the line.”

Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton said on Dec 5 he was proud of his “historic” 12-year spell at Mercedes as he prepares for his final race with the team in Abu Dhabi.

The 39-year-old, who joins Ferrari next season, will bid farewell to Mercedes at the Yas Marina Circuit where he missed out on an unprecedented eighth world title in highly controversial circumstances in 2021.

“This is really it,” the 39-year-old wrote on social media. “My last race with Mercedes AMG F1.

“What we’ve built together over the years is nothing short of historic. People doubted me making this move in 2013, and here we are now.

“The records we’ve broken, the championships we’ve won, it all speaks for itself. This won’t be the last time I thank Mercedes, but going into my final race with this team is really hitting me now.

“It’s really the end of an era in my life.”

Hamilton won 84 grands prix, took 78 pole positions and claimed six of his seven championships with Mercedes, having won his first with McLaren in 2008. AFP