Max Verstappen makes subtle dig at Lewis Hamilton in April
Max Verstappen’s engineers were spotted laughing back at the Dutchman’s haters at the Miami as the Red Bull man was subjected to abuse and taunts on the side of the track. Verstappen was sworn at by attendees at the US circuit before beginning his race from ninth on the grid, as he then stormed to victory.
Before the race, Verstappen was the subject of vitriol which was amplified by the pre-race show introducing each driver – conducted by rapper LL Cool J. The 25-year-old was the only one who was given a hostile welcome, which continued as he discussed the upcoming race with his engineers.
Caught on camera were several fans chanting abuse and swearing at Verstappen, who appeared unaware of what was going on behind him but his engineers instead laughed and blew kisses back to those in the stands as preparation continued before Verstappen won in Miami.
After the race, Verstappen was asked about the backlash he received. “If I were driving in the back nobody would be doing anything in terms of reaction,” he told Sky Sports. I think it is normal when you are winning and they don’t like who is winning. It is something for me which is absolutely fine as long as I am standing on the top. To me, the most important thing is I take the trophy home and they go back to their houses and they can… have a nice evening.”
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The pre-race show seen in Miami is only set to take place at certain events, possibly eight in all this season. Mercedes driver George Russell called the spectacle “distracting” and Verstappen also spoke out against the event.
“I had enough preparation before to speak to my engineers. But this is a personality thing. Some people like to be more in the spotlight, and some people don’t,” said Verstappen.
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@chriskh7 This is why Max won at Miami ������ #f1 #f1miami #maxverstappen #redbull #redbullracing ♬ original sound – Chris KH
“Personally I don’t. So for me, what they did was not necessary. I prefer just to talk to my engineers, walk to my car, put the helmet on and drive.
“I understand the entertainment value, but I hope we don’t have this at every single race, because we have a very long season ahead of us, and we don’t need to enter like that every time.”
Lewis Hamilton, however, felt that it was a positive addition to F1: “Formula One is trying new things and trying to improve the show. I am in full support of that. I grew up listening to LL Cool J, and LL Cool J was there. You look over and will.i.am is there, too, and he is an incredible artist. I thought it was cool.”
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