Verstappen clear on bond with Hamilton: 'Not going to have dinner together'

F1 News

9 November 2021 at 17:07
Last update 9 November 2021 at 20:00
  • GPblog.com

Max Verstappen is competing with Lewis Hamilton this season to win the world championship. Although it seems to outsiders that both drivers don't like each other, the Dutchman doesn't think this is so bad.

The Dutchman is in an interview with Squaremile.com clear about the bond with his competitor. "We’re how competitors should be – we’re not exactly going to have dinner together but that’s fine," stated Verstappen. "You have that competitive spirit and we always try to beat each other on track, but also try to respect each other off track as well. So far there have been some tense moments, but overall it’s been all right."

Incident between Verstappen and Hamilton

There were several moments this season when Verstappen and Hamilton quarrelled. In Italy, for example, the Red Bull driver literally drove on top of the Brit when they went through the corner together. According to Verstappen, however, this had a clear reason.

"We were racing for position in Monza but you need two people to work together to make the corner and Lewis just kept squeezing until there wasn’t room anymore for two cars and that’s when we crashed. I was there to try and race hard but fair. It’s very unfortunate what happened but we are both professionals – we move on."