Max Verstappen is known for being vocal with his radio messages to his Race Engineer Gianpiero Lambiase, often causing a bit of a stir due to the witty remarks they exchange.
However, the series of eyebrow-raising exchanges during the Hungarian Grand Prix raised questions on the relationship drivers have with their pit wall.
Speaking during media day at the Belgian Grand Prix, Verstappen was swift to assure that his relationship with the team wasn’t hurt.
“I mean, from my side, I think it was quite clear that the strategy was wrong. And of course I’m very driven, like everyone else in the team, that we want to try and be perfect.
“Now I know that every single race to do that is very, very hard. I think we came very close last year. But when things are not going how they should have been, I think it’s quite normal that you can share your frustration with it.”
“And that’s what I did. And also, of course, when you’re full of adrenaline and things are happening in the race that you’re not happy with, you voice your frustration. But then also, after the meeting, it’s quite clear.
“You talk about these things, that what we did was not optimal in terms of how we executed the race. And we learned from it. And you just move on.“
He says the comments around his choice of language are not something that bothers him, advising people to turn the volume down or not listen to the 26-year-old.
“People that don’t like my language, then don’t listen in. I mean, turn the volume down.
“I am very driven to success. I think I’ve proven that already. And I always want to optimise stuff.
“Now, people can argue that you might not be so vocal on the radio. But that’s their opinion. My opinion is that it needs to be said at the time to maybe also try and force that the second pit would have been a bit different.
“And yeah, that’s how it goes. We are very open-minded. We are very critical to each other as a team.
“And that’s been working for us very well. So I don’t expect that to change.“
When asked if he was against broadcasting radio messages to the world, he mentioned how adrenaline can be the cause behind fiery statements, and how other sports don’t have to consider this factor, such as football in particular.
“Well, that’s also a thing. In other sports, people say things, but they don’t have a mic attached to their mouths.
“So in a way, maybe for the broadcasting of course, you can argue that. I don’t care, I say what I want.But yeah, that’s our sport as well, naturally. Because you’re communicating a lot with the pit wall. You have, of course, the opportunity to talk.”
“Where in other sports, maybe you swear yourself about stuff that you didn’t like. Or a teammate didn’t pass you the ball. You call them whatever it is.”
“But there is no mic. It’s just how our sport is.”
Following his participation in the iRacing Spa 24 Hours until three in the morning on race day, the triple world champion quickly faced backlash, including from Sky Sports commentators David Croft and Nico Rosberg.
Additionally, team advisor Helmut Marko revealed Verstappen had consented to stop competing in sim races late into the night on Grand Prix weekends after talking with Red Bull about the matter.
But, he dismissed that his sim racing caused his seemingly bad mood.
“Yeah, I raced until 3am. It’s not something new.
“And for me, it’s something very important in my life. No other sim race is coming up anyway, so no one needs to worry about that. But it’s always, you know, when you don’t win the race, you will always blame it on how you were staying up until 3am.“
“Always one kilo overweight. There are always things to make up that you can argue about when you don’t win a race. But for example, in Imola, I do win the race, both of them.
“So for me, this is not something new. I’ve been doing this since 2015. So for me, this is not something that is any different in my preparation.“
“I’ve won three world championships. I think I know pretty well what I can and what I cannot do. And I’m always very hard on myself.
“What is allowed and isn’t allowed. So with all the experience that I have in Formula 1, I think I know what is possible.“
“It’s not that I have a ban or whatever. I also don’t need to tell them, what they do in their private time during the weekends. And that’s the same for me.
“That’s our approach, you know. I think it’s important that you can be critical. Because in this world that we are living now, I feel anyway that a lot of people can’t take criticism anymore like it used to be.“
Verstappen had contact with Lewis Hamilton on lap 63 as they fought for the last podium position; After arguing that the Brit had moved under braking, the Red Bull driver finally locked up, and while he was running deep, his left rear wheel hit the Mercedes’s front right wheel.
This sent his car up in the air and eventually finished fifth after falling back behind Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, while Hamilton maintained his third-place finish.
Both drivers spoke to stewards and no penalties came for either of them, he recalled the meeting, saying: “We explained our vision and after that we went home.
“That’s it, I mean, they have decided. There’s nothing that you can do about it, the decision as well. Even if you think it’s right or wrong, we move on. we just move on with it and it’s a new race with new opportunities.”
