Max Verstappen labels wild George Russell crash 'a good thing' as F1 icon has no regrets

Max Verstappen has argued that his crash with George Russell at the Spanish Grand Prix earlier this season 'might have been a good thing that happened', despite costing the four-time world champion priceless points in his World Championship fight.

Heading into the Mexican Grand Prix this weekend, Verstappen was 40 points behind World Championship leader Oscar Piastri. Still, that deficit could have been even smaller if not for a controversial moment in Barcelona back in May.

Verstappen was told to give a position back to Russell after being shuffled onto the run-off area in the aftermath of a late-race safety car restart. The Dutchman disagreed, and after slowing to allow the Mercedes driver to pass him on the exit of Turn Four, he dived straight back at him in Turn Five, making contact with the British racer.

The stewards took a dim view of the clash and slapped Verstappen with a 10-second time penalty. This dropped him to 10th in the final classification, and his driving sparked plenty of backlash from pundits and fans alike.

Looking back, though, while Verstappen accepts that it was a mistake to lunge at Russell in the manner that he did, he believes that it could have had a positive impact. "That's life, if that's the case," he told De Telegraaf when asked about the points lost in Spain, and their impact on his title odds.

"You learn from everything, whether it's good or bad. But if you ask me now if I would have done anything differently in my entire career, the answer is no. That moment in Barcelona was certainly not good, but there's nothing I can do about it now. Maybe it's also a good thing that it happened. And you shouldn't forget why I did it."

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Verstappen then made it clear that he felt he should never have needed to give Russell the place back in the first place. The team decided to do so in anticipation of FIA action, and not the other way around.

"That's why I missed out on a good result," he continued. "I was frustrated at the time, but that also showed how much I cared. If I hadn't cared at all, I could have said: 'Just pass me, sort it out, and I'll go home.'

"That's not how I am. That's why I can't agree with what Helmut [Marko] said, that I temporarily lost interest in Formula One. I'm always motivated. Of course, I'm happier when I win races, but that applies to everyone.

"But when I'm in the car - and I've learned this from a young age - you always have to give it your all. Because if you don't do it, someone else will. You can't afford to get into a Formula One car with half-hearted motivation."