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Max Verstappen Under Fire After Controversial Move on George Russell During Spain GP

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Orlando Silva | Last updated Jun 1, 2025 12:06 PM ET

The 2025 Formula 1 Spanish Grand Prix was pleasantly entertaining after the Monaco race, which ended with many fans and drivers criticizing the lack of emotion the iconic race provided.

The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya was the scenario for one of the most entertaining and emotional races of the still young 2025 season. After McLaren secured a one-two start on Saturday, with Oscar Piastri taking the pole position followed by Lando Norris, the latter couldn't hold off Max Verstappen at the start.

Verstappen starred in the biggest storyline of the race after his career went from best to worst in the final laps. Following a Kimi Antonelli DNF and a subsequent safety car, every team called their drivers to the box to get new tyres for a final sprint.

The Dutchman went from soft tyres to hard, changing everything he had been doing up to that point.

Ferrari's Charles Leclerc's soft tyres gave him an advantage over Verstappen. The Monaguesque driver passed him with a maneuver that didn't sit well with his opponent.

While Verstappen repeatedly asked for Leclerc to give back his position, Mercedes driver George Russell got closer to the Red Bull star. At one point, he was going off on the team radio and caused a collision with Russell when the latter tried to pass him.

Drama in the closing stages of the race!

Max Verstappen drops to P10 following a 10-second penalty for causing a collision with George Russell #F1 #SpanishGP pic.twitter.com/anhkyJ92pk
— Formula 1 (@F1) June 1, 2025

This move rubbed a lot of people the wrong way and fans let him know on social media. The criticism didn't take long, as they called for a penalty for the four-time world champion.

"What on earth is Max doing on George there?????" commentator Matt Gallagher questioned.

"Max deserves a race suspension for that. He purposely hit Russell. Wow," one fan said.

"WOW LMAO WTF WAS THAT," a third fan said.

"Verstappen must be banned ! He has done this his whole career! He will kill people!!!" a fourth fan wrote.

"Max is a total clown," a fifth fan wrote.

"Max is def getting a 10 second penalty That’s absurd," a sixth fan said.

Verstappen went from fighting for P2 with Norris to losing P3 with Leclerc and going all the way down to P10 after being given a 10-second penalty.

McLaren confirmed their leadership in the constructors' championship (362 points) while Ferrari takes over Mercedes and Red Bull for P2 (167 points).

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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