F1 champion SLAMS Max Verstappen tactics in bizarre comparison

Max Verstappen

F1 champion SLAMS Verstappen tactics in bizarre comparison

Max Verstappen's driving style has come under fire recently

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Friday 1 November 2024 09:57

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A former Formula 1 world champion has slammed Max Verstappen's Mexican Grand Prix tactics, after the Dutchman came under fire from the FIA.

Verstappen was handed two 10-second penalties during the Mexican GP, following some over-aggressive driving while fighting with championship rival Lando Norris.

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The Brit was forced off the track by Verstappen, earning the three-time champion his first penalty, and the Dutchman was also penalised for leaving the track and gaining an advantage a few corners later.

Norris claimed Verstappen's driving was 'dangerous', while Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff described the champion's tactics as 'dirty driving'.

Max Verstappen and Lando norris are currently in a battle for the championship

Max Verstappen received two 10-second penalties in Mexico

Verstappen's FIA penalties

The week before at the US GP, Verstappen was criticised for a similar incident with Norris, being accused of bending the limits of the rules, but it was Norris who was given a five-second penalty for overtaking the Dutchman off-track.

George Russell has since revealed that a meeting of the Grand Prix Drivers' Association at the Mexico GP determined that racing rules should be looked at ahead of next month's Qatar GP, with 19 out of 20 drivers agreeing.

The Brit said that he hadn't seen the kind of tactics being deployed by Verstappen since the Dutchman's 2021 title battle with Lewis Hamilton.

Now, 1996 world champion Damon Hill has issued a bizarre comparison with a fictional character from Wacky Races, while slamming Verstappen's driving style.

"The area footage is very clear," Hill said on the Sky Sports F1 podcast.

"He made no attempt to back off and make the corner and leave room for Lando. It was simply a case of you are not coming through.

"The second move was just daft and Dick Dastardly stuff. He accelerated to the apex and drove Lando off the track and Lando didn't have much option. That was silly driving.

"They say that sport doesn't build character, it shows character, and his default is to revert to preventative methods rather than trying to keep it within the bounds of fairness," Hill added.

"You shouldn't be allowed to use your car as a weapon and simply block the track."