Max Verstappen Accuses Mercedes Of Purposefully Targeting Red Bull

Max Verstappen has continued to hit out at George Russell and Mercedes after the British driver made contact with his Red Bull during the early stages of the Azerbaijan Sprint race.

The pair came to blows after the race when Russell apologised to the two-time champion whilst explaining that he lost grip but Verstappen felt it was just an excuse and called him a "d***head".

The Dutch driver continued to blast the driver during the post-race press conference. He explained to the media that he believed he had left enough space for Russell to get through before making a sly comment that "it is difficult for them not to hit a Red Bull car". Verstappen explained:

"In my opinion, he did. I mean, we came through the corner without him hitting the wall on the inside. So I think I left enough space, but apparently, it is difficult for them [Mercedes] not to hit a Red Bull car."

Despite the damage caused to his RB19, Verstappen managed to go on to finish in third-place behind his Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez and Ferrari's Charles Leclerc in first and second, respectively.

Verstappen went on to comment on the rest of his race in Baku. He continued:

"The car jumped around a lot and skidded in some weird places.

"I have to look at the data to know exactly how much damage was done.

"It's not great, and of course, you try to close the gap a bit. Of course, you are constantly in dirty air, and I think my tyres got a bit too hot at one point, too."

The sprint race has no affect on the Azerbaijan Grand Prix tomorrow due to the recent sprint race weekend format change. So, Verstappen will be starting from second place tomorrow after putting in the second fastest time during the qualifying session on Friday.