Stunning Max Verstappen defence launched after controversial George Russell collision

Max Verstappen

Stunning Max Verstappen defence launched after controversial George Russell collision

Max Verstappen and George Russell caused controversy again in Spain

Sheona Mountford F1 Journalist

Motorsport journalist working in F1 since 2024.

Friday 6 June 2025 09:12

A F1 insider has held Red Bull accountable for Max Verstappen’s frustration at the Spanish Grand Prix - which resulted in a collision with George Russell.

Verstappen was left furious when his team put him on the hard tyre compound for the safety car restart, with drivers complaining throughout the weekend that there was no grip and poor balance on the C1.

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Speaking on his YouTube channel, F1 journalist and former team manager Peter Windsor reviewed the Spanish GP and defended Verstappen against his team’s tyre strategy error.

"Red Bull made a huge mistake in strategy,” he said.

"I'm absolutely stunned by [Red Bull's] decision. Why didn't they leave him out? He was on used softs.

“Yeah, Oscar Piastri probably would have caught him, but the DRS wouldn't have come into play until the last three laps or so. Maybe Oscar would have caught him, but I don't think Lando [Norris] would have caught him.

“And if he had, he would have finished third, worst case scenario. But he certainly wouldn't have finished behind Charles Leclerc and George Russell. So what was going on in Red Bull's mind? I just have no idea. They completely lost it with the strategy."

Red Bull ruin Verstappen’s race with a poor strategy

The hard tyres completely destroyed Verstappen’s Spanish GP, with the Dutchman forced to fight after the safety car restart on temperamental tyres against his rivals on the softs.

Verstappen was especially vulnerable to Russell when the Mercedes dove down the inside into Turn 1 and made contact with the Red Bull, which sent him onto the escape road.

However, Verstappen was urged by his team to give the place back to Russell after emerging ahead, and the champion later seemingly decided to move into the side of his rival prompting a collision between the pair.

"There was a lot of discussion at the pit wall at Red Bull and it wasn't good, because they came to the remarkable decision that they had to tell Max that he had to give the position back to George," Windsor continued.

"In the meantime, the FIA ruled on exactly the same situation that they would not take any further action. So there was no need to tell Max that he had to give that position back to George."

Nevertheless, Verstappen’s move into Russell earnt him a 10-second time penalty, three additional penalty points and the threat of a race ban. If Verstappen acquires one more penalty point in Canada or Austria, he will hit the 12-points threshold in 12 months and will be forced to miss the next race.

The 27-year-old’s penalty also dropped him down to 10th in the race where he picked up a measly point, harming his championship chances as he slips even further behind Oscar Piastri and McLaren.