Even his most devoted supporters will acknowledge that the Dutch driver was in a sour mood throughout the race at Hungaroring. When it seemed likely that he would secure a podium finish, Verstappen encountered Hamilton on the track. What followed was an intriguing battle, with the Red Bull driver having fresher tires compared to the Mercedes driver.
On lap 62 of the 60-lap race in Hungary, Verstappen attempted a maneuver from a considerable distance behind Hamilton as they entered Turn 1. The Red Bull car collided with Hamilton’s car as the latter braked too late. Fortunately, the incident did not result in a situation similar to the one at Monza, and both drivers were lucky to escape unharmed.
However, Verstappen went wide after the collision, allowing Charles Leclerc in the Ferrari to overtake him. What could have been a third-place finish for the reigning champion turned into a fifth-place finish. Hamilton, on the other hand, managed to secure third place, with McLaren drivers Oscar Poaistri and Lando Norris finishing ahead of him.
Throughout the race, Verstappen displayed a foul-mouthed attitude. He berated his Red Bull team, showed rudeness towards his long-suffering engineer Gianpiero Lambiase, and even directed his frustrations towards his rivals. It was an unpleasant version of Max Verstappen that showed up to work that day.
In anticipation of the upcoming race in Belgium, Hamilton shared his thoughts on Verstappen’s “dive-bomb” incident from the previous Sunday’s race. He expressed his surprise, stating that he was already relaxed about the situation and considered it to be a racing incident. However, Hamilton pointed out that one car was under control while the other was not at the time of the incident.
Hamilton admitted, “If you look at the replay, I was very far from the apex at the end of the whole move. There was a lot of room on the right-hand side, so I was very, very surprised.”
When asked about Verstappen’s critical remarks towards his team, the 39-year-old Hamilton commented on the importance of being a team player and acting like a world champion. He stated, “You have to remember that you are a teammate with many people and you have to behave accordingly.” When asked what that meant, Hamilton responded, “That’s a good question… But it shouldn’t be like it was last weekend.”
Verstappen, on the other hand, remained unapologetic after the race and placed the blame on his team rather than accepting fault. He argued, “Ultimately, if we had executed a better strategy, we wouldn’t have been in that position. I don’t think I made a mistake. I went for a move that was completely legitimate, and I don’t believe I braked too late.”
