The inaugural Las Vegas Grand Prix delivered an exceptional display of Formula One racing than previously anticipated. Despite the track issues and a series of ups and downs, the uncertainties of the circuit delivered a great exhibition of pure racing. While everybody had their moments of highs and lows, Max Verstappen secured his 18th record win of the season.
Max Verstappen lost pole to Charles Leclerc by the barest of margins. Yet, he passed him on turn 1 of the initial lap. While the audacious move did get penalized, it hardly left any impact on Verstappen, who was flying in his RB19. Having said that, the Red Bull driver faced another setback when George Russell ran into him out of nowhere. However, the Dutch driver ended up giving the benefit of the doubt to the Mercedes driver.
Max Verstappen Defends George Russell’s Move, Which Led To A Collision In Las Vegas!
The street circuit of Las Vegas came alive during the main race. After multiple setbacks during the qualifying session and practice sessions, the unknowns of the track delivered an exceptional display of racing. A lot of racing incidents took place, and the drivers involved were penalized equally. In a particular incident, Mercedes driver George Russell ran into Max Verstappen of Red Bull, which caused minimal damage to both cars. While Verstappen fumed on the team radio, he was relatively calm during the post-race interview. He gave Russell the benefit of the doubt owing to unknowns of the track conditions.
“I think he just didn’t expect me to pass him into that corner. Because that’s how it felt like, I put it on the inside. And he just turned in like there was no one there,” said Max Verstappen. On lap 25 of the race, Russell collided with Verstappen on turn 12 as the latter turned from the inside to maintain the lead. Perhaps George Russell didn’t check his mirrors and ran into the Red Bull driver. Subsequently, the Mercedes driver was penalized with a five-second penalty, which dropped him from P4 to P8. Having said that, Verstappen’s positive outlook towards the racing incident came as a surprise to the F1 fans, given the history between the two. The duo had a heated confrontation following a collision during a sprint race earlier this year wherein Max Verstappen called Russell a “d***head.” It seems the hatches remain buried for the good.
“Totally My Fault,” George Russell Takes Blames For Collision With Verstappen!
On the flip side, the man at the center of the incident, George Russell, broke his silence and took the blame for the entire incident. In the post-race interview, the Mercedes driver said the incident was totally his fault. But at the same time, he pleaded innocence, saying he didn’t see Max Verstappen as he was coming in from a completely blind spot.
“I wasn’t really expecting to be overtaken there because you’ve got big long straight with DRS afterward,” said Russell after the Las Vegas race. Nevertheless, Las Vegas’s inaugural grand prix delivered to the hype. With the penultimate GP ending on an exciting note, fans can’t wait for the finals showdown at Abu Dhabi.
