Max Verstappen savagely trolls Charles Leclerc after controversial F1 penalty

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Verstappen savagely trolls Leclerc after controversial F1 penalty

The three-time F1 champion could not help himself

Tyler Rowlinson

Wednesday 22 November 2023 09:12

Max Verstappen savagely trolled Charles Leclerc after he referred to an iconic Formula 1 meme during the drivers' press conference after the Las Vegas Grand Prix.

The legendary video Verstappen made reference to depicts a young Leclerc mispronouncing the word ‘incident’ with a ‘ch’ sound after a coming together between the two in their karting days.

The viral meme now has a huge cult status amongst F1 fans and Verstappen hilariously referenced it in the press conference after the race following the first lap drama between the two drivers.

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Speaking after the race, Verstappen said: “We had that little moment. I explained to Charles what happened and also with the debriefing, I think that's something we do naturally.

"We did that already back in the day in go-karting and stuff. It's nice, especially when you have a fun race together, everyone, and you had some battles. There's always something to talk about.”

Max Verstappen made the hilarious reference following first lap drama with Charles Leclerc

Charles Leclerc was deemed to have been pushed off the track by Verstappen

Leclerc added: “Yeah, exactly. However, I think the debriefs we had back in the day were a bit more tense.”

The world champion then interrupted the Ferrari driver with an iconic reference to the meme, jokingly stating: “It was just an inchident.”

Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc talked about an "inchident" from the Las Vegas GP in their post-race press conference ? pic.twitter.com/pwCZ7I9hGE
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) November 20, 2023

Verstappen and Leclerc’s 'inchident'

The incident Verstappen was referring to was on the first lap heading into the first corner.

The two started on the front row of the grid with the Ferrari on pole. Verstappen was promoted to second after Leclerc’s team-mate Carlos Sainz was handed a 10-place grid penalty due to the changes he was forced to make to his car after striking a loose manhole cover in FP1.

The Red Bull driver looked to take the lead in the first corner, but in doing so he ran Leclerc off the track and was given a five-second time penalty by the stewards.

The three-time world champion claimed his 18th win of the season in Las Vegas

Despite this and contact with George Russell and a few safety cars, Verstappen fought his way back to the front of the grid and after an intense battle with the Ferrari, the Dutchman scythed through to grab his 18th win of the season and Red Bull's 20th, surpassing Mercedes’ record of 19 victories in 2019.