Max Verstappen vs Liam Lawson: Racing Bulls responds to ‘fighting for your seat’ Mexico clash
Max Verstappen and Liam Lawson have both been penalised for their practice clash.
Racing Bulls team principal Alan Permane has dismissed Max Verstappen’s “not very smart” comment about Liam Lawson after the two collided during second practice at the Mexican Grand Prix.
The pair were involved in a clash during Friday’s second practice at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez.
Alan Permane dismisses Max Verstappen’s criticism of Liam Lawson after Mexico clash
Heading into the stadium section, Verstappen tried to pass Lawson down the inside, only for the Racing Bulls driver to hold his ground into Turn 13.
Verstappen was muscled off the track, and as he came back over the kerb and onto the circuit, the pair made contact.
Lawson told Racing Bulls over the radio: “He literally drove into me. If I back out every single time, what the **** do I do?
“He actually came off the track into the side of me!”
Lawson pitted for a new front wing, while Verstappen’s Red Bull RB22 suffered bargeboard damage.
The four-time F1 world champion not only blamed Lawson, but he also told him that it wasn’t the smartest thing to do given he’s still trying to secure his Racing Bulls seat for next season.
“Well, I don’t think it’s called unlucky,” Verstappen said. “Maybe not very smart behaviour, what he was trying to do there.
“But I mean, at the end of the day, it’s not going to change my weekend.
“If I would be him, I would act a little bit smarter. Also, when you’re fighting for your seat, it’s not very smart behaviour.”
Permane was quick to dismiss that.
He said that while he understood that both drivers wanted an uninterrupted final sector, fighting for it was “unnecessary”.
“So when you’re doing a lap here, an out-lap or a cooldown lap, one thing that’s really important is to do the last sector fast because doing that gives you tyres for Turn 1,” said the Racing Bulls team boss.
“Without that, you risk front locking and things like that.
“They were both going for that, and I think if I describe it in one word, it’s just unnecessary.”
Told of Verstappen’s remarks about Lawson not being smart given his position with Red Bull, Racing Bull’s senior team, Permane made it clear that Friday’s clash had no bearing on the New Zealander’s future with the team.
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“That’s not the case,” he said.
“Look, I’m sure they’ve both got their opinion on it. I think when they [look at it] in the cold light of day, they’ll be calm and think, ‘actually, we could have both done better’.
“I don’t think anyone’s picking a fight with anyone. That’s for sure.
“I think it’s just one of those things, and as I say, unnecessary.”
Lawson has yet to be confirmed by Racing Bulls for next season, with junior driver Nikola Tsolov – who appeared in FP1 for Racing Bulls in Mexico – knocking on the door.
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