Speaking ahead of this weekend’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, the finale of the Formula 1 season, Verstappen said the media had not understood what happened in Brazil, but refused to elaborate on what happened between himself, teammate of Sergio Pérez and the Red Bull team. Verstappen had refused to obey a team order in Brazil to allow Pérez to claim sixth place and two extra points. Pérez is in a battle with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc for second in the title race with Red Bull looking to secure the position to claim their first one-two in the drivers’ championship. Verstappen was criticized for not doing so, but insisted he had reasons for his actions, believed to be his reaction to claims Pérez crashed deliberately in Monaco earlier this year, preventing the Dutchman from hitting pole. Verstappen, however, dismissed the report of what happened in Brazil as unfair. “After that fight, he looked really bad in the media. They didn’t have a clear picture,” he said. “They don’t know how I function within the team and what the team values of me. So everything I’ve read is pretty disgusting. He then condemned it as irresponsible. “A lot of people, what they write about me is ridiculous,” he added. “At the end of the day you’re contributing to all the problems that social media has by writing this kind of thing. “They started attacking my family, threatening my sister and my mom, my girlfriend, my dad and for me, that goes too far when you don’t have evidence of what was really going on. And this must absolutely stop. If you have a problem with me, that’s fine, but don’t go after my family because that’s just unacceptable.” Red Bull issued a statement on Thursday condemning what it described as “death threats” and “hate mail and vitriol” aimed at team members and their families, suggesting the team was to blame, not Verstappen. The 25-year-old insisted that his actions had been misinterpreted and that he was being treated unfairly. “I’m a bit fed up with all this bullshit,” he said. “Once there is something negative, it needs to be highlighted. It’s very boring to be a part of all this when at the end of the day I haven’t even done anything wrong.” Verstappen was twice asked to give his side of the facts but refused to do so, instead apparently suggesting that without his insight the issue should have been dropped. “We keep it between the team and me,” he said. “You don’t know the real story. So you don’t need to write the story.” Red Bull’s attempt to defuse the tension may also have exacerbated interest in what happened. In their statement they said that “Max was only informed at the last corner of the request to leave his position without all the necessary information being passed on.” However, on-board footage shows he was initially asked to let Pérez pass at turn four and then three more times in the final corner.
