George Russell and Max Verstappen reignited their feud with their coming together at the Spanish Grand Prix. Things looked set to come to a head in Canada as they lined up on the front row of the grid.
The drama first arose at the end of the 2024 season when Verstappen had a heated exchange with Russell in Qatar, after the former was penalised for impeding the latter in qualifying. Things boiled over in Abu Dhabi when the Red Bull driver threatened to deliberately crash into his rival.
Jos Verstappen felt the drama was over heading into the 2025 campaign. But conflict re-emerged when Verstappen collided with Russell in Barcelona after he was told to hand the position back for running wide and coming back on track ahead of the Brit at the safety car restart.
Verstappen admitted responsibility for the incident via social media and in his post-race debrief, as he was hit with a 10-second time penalty and three penalty points to his superlicence. The Dutchman did not apologise to Russell directly, sparking rumours that their feud was still ongoing.
The Canadian Grand Prix set up an intense battle as Russell beat Verstappen to pole position by almost two tenths of a second. The Mercedes driver held on to claim victory as the race ended under the safety car after Lando Norris hit Oscar Piastri on lap 67.
George Russell and Max Verstappen were ‘chatting like old mates’ off camera at the Canadian Grand Prix
Verstappen said it was not ‘necessary’ to talk to Russell after their coming together in Barcelona. It suggested that the two rivals were still not on speaking terms after their feud in 2024.
But the pair seemed to rubbish those rumours in the cooldown room in Canada. Verstappen praised Russell’s ‘very good’ start to the race as he held his own into turn one.
In the post-race press conference, journalist Tom Clarkson noticed that the Red Bull and Mercedes drivers were ‘chatting like old mates’ before the cameras were turned on. Speaking via F1 Nation, he says it bursts the balloon that the two do not get on.
“For everyone who loves the beef between George and Max Verstappen, I’m just going to burst that little balloon by saying in the press conference after the race before the cameras were turned on, they were chatting like old mates.
“Sharing photos on their phones and all sorts, so there you go. Whatever’s gone on between those two, end of last year and last time out in Spain, it feels like all is good in the hood.”
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Red Bull’s FIA protest about Mercedes at the Canadian GP suggests there’s still drama between the teams
While the race ended under the safety car, it did not stop there from being drama in the final laps of the Canadian GP. Red Bull launched a protest to the FIA after the race, accusing Russell of braking extensively under the safety car, which meant Verstappen momentarily overtook him.
The Milton Keynes outfit accused Russell of deliberate action to get their driver a penalty. Verstappen is one penalty point away from a race ban, with the Dutchman needing to hold on until after Austria for his penalty points to reduce from 11 to nine.
Red Bull’s protest was thrown out by the FIA five and a half hours after the race, seeing no ill intent from the Mercedes camp. Russell’s unheard radio proved he was correct as he was following his delta time, which drivers are required to do until safety car conditions.
Toto Wolff claims Verstappen would ‘never’ support Red Bull in their protest against Russell. The situation indicates there is still some tension between the two camps, that dates back to the infamous 2021 season.
