It has become tradition in recent years for Lewis Hamilton to organise an end-of-year dinner for Formula One’s drivers at the final grand prix in Abu Dhabi; a chance to put aside differences and catch up in an informal setting.
This year’s meal had some serious extra spice, though, with two of the drivers currently engaged in a very public war of words.
Lando Norris joked on Instagram on Thursday night that George Russell and Max Verstappen – who had spent all afternoon sparring in media interviews in the paddock as the fallout from last weekend’s race in Qatar continued apace – “sat as far away from each other as possible” at this year’s dinner.
But it turns out the evening did not start out like that.
It has emerged that Russell was the last to arrive and the other drivers, as a way to defuse the tension, had left him a seat next to Verstappen, collapsing in giggles when he arrived and saw what they had done. Russell promptly moved the seat to the other end of the table.
It was another sign that this feud is going to take some time to simmer down. Both drivers were absolutely scathing about the other in interviews earlier in the day. Russell called Verstappen a “bully”, alleging that the Dutchman had threatened to “put his f—— head in the wall” in Qatar, an allegation his Red Bull rival denied. Verstappen, meanwhile, labelled Russell a “loser”, saying he had “lied” to the stewards in order to earn the Red Bull driver a grid penalty in Doha.
“George is a backstabber,” Verstappen said in an interview with Dutch media. “The way he brings up all this nonsense – he’s just a loser. He lies and cobbles things together that don’t add up. I only voiced my opinion about his behaviour with the stewards.
“Clearly, he couldn’t handle that. And his comments about 2021? [Russell had said that Hamilton was the rightful winner of that race and claimed Verstappen would have been out for then race director Michael Masi’s blood had the race worked out in Hamilton’s favour] That’s how he acted with the stewards, insinuating nonsense.”
The other drivers are obviously finding the spat amusing. As well as the musical chairs at the dinner, and the Norris Instagram post, they also admitted in interviews in the paddock to getting the popcorn out.
“I hope it doesn’t get smoothed out,” Norris said with a smile on Thursday. “I hope they stay fighting and arguing because it’s amusing to watch.
Asked whether Verstappen was a bully, the McLaren driver added: “Every other driver has their own way of doing things. But I don’t think Max tries to intimidate. Max just says the truth, in his opinion. And I’m completely fine with that. Sometimes I disagree with his opinion, sometimes I agree. But that’s fine. I respect Max a lot and I respect George a lot. But I don’t mind if they lose respect for one another.”
At least Russell and Verstappen ended the dinner happy. Russell thanked Valtteri Bottas, who is leaving Sauber and possibly Formula One at the end of the season, for footing the bill, which came to around £4,000. And Verstappen was happy too. He announced overnight that his girlfriend, Kelly Piquet, the daughter of three-time champion Nelson Piquet, was pregnant with their first child together.
“Mini Verstappen-Piquet on the way,” the Dutch driver wrote on Instagram. “We couldn’t be happier with our little miracle.”
Piquet already has a daughter, Penelope, with former F1 driver Daniil Kvyat. Verstappen has frequently spoken about how much he enjoys spending time with Penelope and even replied to a Red Bull message of congratulations on Instagram: “Of course I’m already kind of a bonus dad. But I’m still very excited!”
