Following a heated and controversial clash with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen at the Spanish GP, George Russell heads into the 2025 F1 Canadian GP with a firm focus on points. The Mercedes driver, who has quietly emerged as a consistent threat in this McLaren-dominated season, appears undistracted by the drama in Barcelona — instead choosing to prioritise performance over past frustrations.
While Verstappen’s actions in Spain continue to dominate headlines, Russell is looking ahead, not back. With Montreal offering another opportunity to solidify his place in the championship fight, the Briton remains composed amid the noise, as he prepares for what promises to be a pivotal weekend at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.
The Spanish GP Collision
George Russell and Max Verstappen came to blows in the closing laps of the 2025 F1 Spanish GP, following a tense Safety Car restart. As the pair battled for position into Turn 1, Verstappen ran wide and off the track, but rejoined ahead of Russell. Red Bull then instructed the Dutchman to relinquish the place.
However, Verstappen’s execution of that instruction raised eyebrows across the paddock. Rather than yielding cleanly, he slowed exiting Turn 4, then accelerated and collided with Russell through the next left-hand turn. Although Verstappen eventually gave up the position and crossed the line in fifth place, the stewards issued him a 10-second penalty for causing a collision — dropping him to tenth.
In an unexpected twist, Verstappen took full responsibility for the incident the following day. Posting on Instagram, he admitted that it was “a move that was not right and should not have happened.”
No issues between Russell and Verstappen
During his Thursday media day duties ahead of the 2025 F1 Canadian GP in Montreal, Russell addressed the incident with Verstappen. He stated that he saw it as Verstappen “just trying to get his elbows out and show who’s boss” rather than a premeditated, malicious act.
While a bit surprised to see Verstappen take responsibility, Russell insisted that there was no bad blood between them, although they had not had the opportunity to speak about the incident directly.
“Obviously it would have been a different feeling had it taken me out of the race but ultimately I benefitted from it and he was penalised. I was a bit surprised to see he had taken responsibility, so fine. But I have not spoken to him about it. We actually bumped into each other at the airport the other day but I actually completely forgot we crashed into each other a few days prior. No issues.”
Verstappen on the brink of ban
In addition to the time penalty, the Stewards handed Verstappen three penalty points on his FIA super licence. That tally now stands at 11 — just one point away from triggering an automatic one-race ban. With the Canadian and Austrian GPs still to navigate before any of those points are cleared after a 12-month cycle, the reigning World Champion must now tread carefully in order to avoid being sidelined during a crucial phase of the season.
When asked whether it would be fair for Verstappen to miss a race due to penalty points, Russell made his stance on the matter clear.
“I think that is how it should be in racing,” he said. “At the end of the day if you take on risky moves and you get it wrong you get penalised and, if you get your points, you will be banned for a race.”
“I am not going to sit here and say X, Y, Z because it is ultimately not really my problem. It is his problem. I am looking forward to the weekend and then go from there. That is racing.”
