Max Verstappen makes confident Lewis Hamilton claim despite Brit’s u-turn on Brazil drama
Lewis Hamilton goes undercover to inspire school children (LONG VERSION)
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Max Verstappen has belligerently dismissed the threat of a penalty from the Brazilian Grand Prix, saying him and Lewis Hamilton “are not here to be in a kindergarten.” It was the Mercedes man who prevailed at Interlagos, fighting back from 10th on the grid to pass his rival with 12 laps to go and keep his championship hopes alive.
However, the post-race talk has been dominated by an incident between the two drivers prior to Hamilton’s overtake, where he sought to pass Verstappen on his outside as the pair approached turn four.
The Dutchman appeared to run wide with a manoeuvre that forced both drivers off the track, and they came within inches of colliding with each other for what would have been the third time this season.
At the time, FIA officials didn’t deem the incident significant enough to investigate, a decision which Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff later described as “laughable.”
New footage has come to light this week though, prompting the ‘Silver Arrows’ to launch an appeal in the hope of getting the flashpoint reviewed. That hearing took place on Thursday, with the conclusion expected to be announced on Friday.
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With Verstappen’s championship lead over Hamilton down to 14 points, any subsequent penalty could be pivotal in the destination of the title, but the 24-year-old seemingly is unconcerned by the current background noise.
“Listen, if it would have been the other way around in Brazil it would have exactly played out like that,” he told Sky Sports F1.
“It’s hard racing. We are fighting for a championship; we are not here to be in a kindergarten.”
In Brazil, Hamilton was quickest in qualifying and yet started Saturday’s sprint race at the back of the grid after a DRS infringement, and Verstappen said Mercedes were always going to “complain about something” after that occurrence.
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And the Red Bull driver said he didn’t fear any potential consequences: “I don’t even think about that.
“If [there is a penalty], it’s not the end of the world but again I don’t expect that to happen because I thought it was fair and hard racing between the two guys who were fighting for the championship.”
Hamilton himself has appeared to do a u-turn on the developments, initially playing the incident down immediately after his famous win in Sao Paulo, the 101st of his F1 career.
However, speaking in his press conference on Thursday, he said “I think the reason at the time I would say [what I said] is that’s the mentality you have to take.
“If you sit in the car at the moment and complain it will only hold you back, so in the moment I just had to keep moving forwards and also it’s difficult to judge on something that you’ve not seen all the angles.
“I re-looked at it and I have a different viewpoint naturally now, but I’m just putting all my energy into setting up the car and making sure that I’m in the right headspace this weekend, so I’ve not really given anything to it.”
The 36-year-old, who is seeking a record-breaking eighth world crown, also refused to be drawn on whether he thought Verstappen should be punished.
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