Max Verstappen said Monday that frustration caused “a move that was not right and shouldn’t have happened”, a day after he initially seemed unrepentant over his collision with George Russell at Formula 1’s Spanish Grand Prix.
Verstappen had been asked by his Red Bull team to give up a place to Russell following an earlier incident between the two drivers when he hit Russell’s Mercedes.
The race stewards ruled Verstappen had “suddenly accelerated” before the collision and Russell said it “felt very deliberate”. The stewards gave Verstappen a 10-second penalty which dropped him from fifth to 10th and left him 49 points off standings leader Oscar Piastri, who won Sunday’s race.
“We had an exciting strategy and good race in Barcelona, till the safety car came out. Our tire choice to the end and some moves after the safety car restart fueled my frustration, leading to a move that was not right and shouldn’t have happened,” Verstappen wrote on Instagram.
“I always give everything out there for the team and emotions can run high. You win some together, you lose some together. See you (at the next race) in Montreal.”
Initially in the aftermath of Sunday’s race, Verstappen had said that “next time I will bring a tissue”, responding to Russell claiming he set a poor example for young drivers.
A series of setbacks
The collision followed a series of setbacks for Verstappen, who had been in third and pressuring the two McLaren drivers in front before the safety car came out.
Red Bull decided to bring Verstappen into the pits for fresh tires, even though the only ones he had left were slower hard-compound tires, a type that no other driver used.
At the restart, Verstappen lost grip and was overtaken by Charles Leclerc, whose Ferrari made contact with Verstappen’s Red Bull. Neither driver was ruled at fault for that.
Verstappen then went off the track while defending against Russell and Red Bull asked Verstappen to give up the place to Russell, apparently because the team expected Verstappen would be given a penalty. The stewards later ruled they wouldn’t have taken action against the Dutch driver for that incident.
Risking a suspension
Verstappen needs to be careful in the next two races because the penalty for the collision with Russell also brought him penalty points on his license, taking him to 11 in the last 12 months. Drivers get a one-race suspension if they hit 12 points in a year.
Two of those points expire at the end of the month, but until then Verstappen needs to get through the Canadian and Austrian Grands Prix without any further penalty points.

South Korea captain Son Heung-min will be used sparingly in their World Cup qualifiers against Iraq and Kuwait as he builds up his match fitness following his return from a foot injury, coach Hong Myung-bo said on Monday.
South Korea, who lead Group B by three points, face Iraq in Basra on June 5 before returning home for their final qualifier of the third round against Kuwait five days later.
The Koreans will qualify for their 11th successive World Cup if they avoid defeat by Iraq, who last month appointed former Australia boss Graham Arnold as their head coach.
Son has been dealing with the injury for the past two months and was restricted to a substitute’s appearance in Tottenham Hotspur’s 1-0 win over Manchester United in the Europa League final.
“He and I have not yet discussed exactly how much he will play. But my staff and I already know all about his drive and his desire to play,” Hong told reporters.
“Since we have two matches coming up (to try to qualify for the World Cup), I will not push him too hard. Once we get to Iraq, we will decide which of the two matches we will focus on.”
The 56-year-old said Son’s experience would be invaluable in Iraq even if he does not play.
“We will probably play in a hostile environment in front of partisan fans,” he added.
“We have some players who have had experience playing in these situations. It’s something we should keep in mind going into the stadium for this match.”