Lewis Hamilton hits out at Max Verstappen over X-rated radio exchanges with team

By Philip Duncan, PA F1 Correspondent, Spa

Lewis Hamilton has accused Max Verstappen of not acting like a world champion after the Dutchman told his critics to “turn the volume down” if they do not like his language.

Verstappen, who is set to serve a 10-place grid penalty at Sunday’s Belgian Grand Prix for exceeding his permitted engine parts, has faced a backlash after he turned the airwaves blue in Hungary last weekend.

He was involved in a number of feisty radio exchanges with his British-Italian race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase and berated Red Bull’s strategy as “s***”.

Verstappen, who collided with Hamilton in the closing stages, finished fifth.

Speaking in Spa-Francorchamps ahead of the sport’s concluding round before the four-week summer break, Hamilton was asked about his rival’s behaviour.

“As a team leader or a team member, you have to act like a world champion,” said Hamilton.

When asked to elaborate on what acting like a world champion means, Hamilton said: “Not like it was last weekend.”

For his part, Verstappen said he would not change his approach.

“People that don’t like my language, then don’t listen in,” he said. “Turn the volume down. I am very driven to succeed.

“People can argue that I might not be so vocal on the radio, but that is their opinion and my opinion is that it might have needed to have been said at the time.

 

“We are very open-minded and very critical to each other as a team and that has worked well, so I don’t expect that to change.

“It was quite clear that the strategy was wrong. I am very driven and I want to be perfect. If things are not going how they should be, it is quite normal to show your frustration.

“As a team we learn from it and move on. It is important that we can be critical. In this world, people cannot take criticism like it used to be and I don’t want to end up like that.”

Verstappen, 26, looked on course to waltz to his fourth straight title after he won seven of the opening 10 rounds.

But he is winless from his last three appearances – the first time that has happened in two-and-a-half years – while McLaren dominated at the Hungaroring.

Lando Norris is 76 points adrift of Verstappen with 11 races still remaining.

Verstappen was up beyond 3am on the morning of last Sunday’s race as he took part in a sim-racing event inside his motorhome at the circuit.

Nico Rosberg, the 2016 world champion, described Verstappen’s extra-curricula activity as “disappointing”, while Red Bull motorsport adviser Helmut Marko suggested the team want to draw a line under their star driver’s sim-racing career.

But Verstappen added: “I raced until 3am and it is not something new in my life. If you don’t win the race, it can be blamed on staying up until 3am or being one kilo overweight, but in Imola I won both (the Grand Prix and a sim race).

“I have been doing this since 2015. I have won three World Championships, so I know what I can and cannot do and I know myself what is allowed and what is not.

“We talked about it and I said, ‘You don’t need to worry’. I don’t need to tell them what to do in their private time at the weekend and that is the same for me.”