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Verstappen denounces Herbert's 'big opinion': 'This is abnormal, isn't it?'
Max Verstappen has reacted to all the statements made by Johnny Herbert. The Briton who worked as a steward in Mexico and Singapore where Verstappen picked up penalties. Herbert will also be on duty during this weekend's Brazilian Grand Prix.
"When Verstappen goes into this horrible mindset of trying to gain an advantage by taking a fellow driver off the race track so Ferrari can get the one-two," Herbert stated in an interview after the Mexico GP. "The whole intention of Verstappen was to try to let Ferrari get the one-two finish. I think that’s definitely what Verstappen intended and tried to achieve, I understand why he did it but I don’t agree with it, I don’t think many people do. ‘Fair racing’ is something Norris has mentioned before, and that’s the type of fight he wants to have." Herbert defended himself and the rest of the stewards.
"Well, now you know how he stands," Verstappen said at the press event in Brazil, according to De Telegraaf. "It's abnormal that he says this right? People act like I'm doing it all on purpose. But they can't look inside my head. They are quite extreme accusations."
Verstappen is targetted by the British press
According to Verstappen, Herbert also failed to pay attention in Mexico. Whereas Verstappen received a penalty when he said 'f***ed' during a press conference, Charles Leclerc got away with it in Mexico. The Monegasque is still under investigation but hasn't been given a penalty yet. Verstappen was quickly penalised in Singapore.
Herbert had his opinion ready about Verstappen in an interview after Verstappen's statement, but he remained silent about Leclerc's swearing. "Then he [Herbert] had his big opinion ready. 5-year-olds hear that too. After Mexico, I didn't hear him when Charles Leclerc said the same thing. At a press conference that was watched by more. Anyway, it was late in Europe by then, maybe the thought was that those 5-year-olds are all asleep by then."
According to Verstappen, it is because he has a Dutch passport in a British-dominated F1 paddock. Red Bull Racing has been doing well in recent years so the British press could not knock Red Bull or Verstappen. "It must have hurt a lot of people a lot that they couldn't say anything negative. Now it's all coming out and they're going full steam ahead. They're doing just fine," Verstappen concluded.
This article has been created in collaboration with Matt Gretton