Max Verstappen is not amused. As the Canadian Grand Prix approaches, chatter about the possibility of a penalty-related hiatus hounds the Red Bull Racing driver, and it’s not sitting well with him. Fresh from a tense qualifying session, where he secured a front-row start alongside George Russell, Verstappen expressed his contempt for the ongoing penalty talk, stating, “It’s really p*ssing me off.”
The drama surrounding Verstappen’s penalty points has been a hot topic ever since the Spanish Grand Prix. A late-race collision with George Russell at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya resulted in Verstappen accruing three penalty points. This brought his total to a precarious 11 points—just one shy of earning a race ban. While some of those points are set to expire after the upcoming Austrian Grand Prix, the Canadian race presents its own challenges and risks.
Speculation has intensified due to the back-to-back nature of recent Grand Prix events and the fact that Verstappen and Russell will once again share the front row of the grid. Russell has openly suggested that Verstappen’s maneuver in Spain was “intentional,” while others believe the incident warranted a more severe penalty. Despite these speculations, Verstappen wants no part in the discourse and has consistently deflected further questions on the matter.
During the post-qualifying press conference, Verstappen cut off moderator Tom Clarkson, signaling his exhaustion with the topic. “I don’t need to hear it again,” he emphasized. “It’s really p*ssing me off. You talk about it on Thursday, and it’s such a waste of time—it’s very childish.” His terse responses left little room for interpretation: Verstappen is focused on racing, not the politics of penalty points.
Russell, for his part, seemed equally disinterested in revisiting the incident leading up to the Canadian GP. When queried about his race strategy alongside Verstappen, he insisted, “We’re both fighting for the win here, and neither of us are really in a championship battle. I haven’t had a win this year, so I want to get one on the board.” His focus, much like Verstappen’s, is clearly on victory rather than the ongoing controversy.
As the Canadian Grand Prix looms, the tension between Max Verstappen and his penalty points remains palpable. Yet, with both he and George Russell aiming for victory, the focus will inevitably be on their performance on the track rather than the discussions off it.
