Mercedes’ George Russell was the driver to give no quarter, which infuriated Verstappen and caused as feisty an exchange off track as they had with one another on the streets of Baku. It ended with Verstappen warning he would be gunning for Russell in future. Climbing from their cars, Verstappen confronted Russel who apologised, citing a lack of grip. For a driver with two titles under his belt and a third well within his grasp this season, Verstappen, it could be argued, appeared to be as much aggrieved by Russell’s sheer effrontery in coming at him as anything else. Which gives credence to Russell questioning why he defended so hard, risking ending his race in a wall when he had so much to lose, a point proved when Verstappen duly breezed back past him later.

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