Max Verstappen and George Russell awkwardly address F1 feud

There still appears to be no love lost between Max Verstappen and George Russell following their fall out at the end of the 2024 F1 season.

A feud emerged between Verstappen and Russell at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix season finale after the Red Bull driver claimed Russell had pushed for the grid penalty which cost Verstappen pole position at the previous round in Qatar.

In Abu Dhabi, Russell claimed Verstappen had threatened to “put me on my f***ing head in the wall” and blasted the reigning world champion as a “bully”. Their war of words continued when Verstappen retaliated by labelling Russell a “backstabber” and a “loser”.

There was an awkward moment when Verstappen and Russell were asked about their spat in the FIA press conference after finishing second and third in Sunday’s season-opening Australian Grand Prix.

Asked if they had cleared the air, Verstappen flatly joked: “No, it’s still shockingly bad.

The four-time world champion rather unconvincingly added: “It’s all good, it’s all good.”

Russell simply responded: “What he said.”

Even if they do not fully see eye-to-eye, things have certainly simmered down between the pair. 

Verstappen to Mercedes off the cards

Verstappen and Russell are unlikely to be teammates at Mercedes, with team boss Toto Wolff revealing at the F1 2025 curtain-raiser that the reigning world champion is no longer on their radar.

"We need to concentrate on our driver line-up. I don't flirt outside if I'm in a good relationship,” Wolff said in Melbourne.

"So at the moment that [a move for Verstappen] is not on any radar. I don't plan to shift my concentration away from these guys and [will] make sure that George has some visibility very soon, or has a contract very soon.”

Wolff is set to sit down with Russell soon to discuss a new contract, with the Briton’s current deal expiring at the end of the year.