Formula 1 World Champion freaks out! Verstappen faces ban after rage-fueled race

He also received three penalty points, bringing his total to eleven for a period of 12 months. From the twelfth point, Verstappen would be banned from one Grand Prix.

When asked whether the action against George Russell in the Mercedes shortly before the finish was intentional, Verstappen defiantly replied: "Does that matter?" They were far too slow to fight for the title, he said. "The atmosphere was tense," said Red Bull motorsport advisor Helmut Marko: "There's definitely a certain amount of frustration there , which is reflected in the driving style."

Meanwhile, Piastri celebrated his fifth victory in the ninth race of the season. Teammate Norris, a week after his Monaco triumph, was also unable to threaten the Australian. "I can't complain; it's been a great year so far, and this weekend was exactly the kind of weekend I wanted," said Piastri.

Third place went to Charles Leclerc in a Ferrari, who received no penalty after a maneuver against Verstappen. Nico Hülkenberg in a Sauber finished a fantastic fifth, also leaving record champion Lewis Hamilton in a Ferrari behind after a brilliant maneuver.

Race winner Piastri extended his lead. He now has 186 points, while Norris is on 176. Verstappen received just one point and has just 137 points—49 points less than Piastri.

Things actually went well for Verstappen at the start. In the slipstream of pole-sitter Piastri, he overtook Norris and began to chase Piastri. However, the 27-year-old Dutchman never posed a serious threat to the 24-year-old Australian. Piastri had already won four of the eight Grand Prix races leading up to the Spanish race. Norris won two, including the most recent classic in Monaco.

Starting this weekend in Catalonia, however, a tightened rule will apply, with the front wings allowed to bend even less. Some believed McLaren had pushed the envelope and could be the one to suffer. But they were mistaken. Record world champion Lewis Hamilton of Ferrari even called the measure a waste of money: "Nothing has changed."

Piastri initially cruised alone at the front. Verstappen opted for an early first tire change. A week after the boring Monaco race, the Spanish race quickly became a battle of strategy. Red Bull took a risk with Verstappen to put pressure on McLaren. He had also allowed Norris to overtake without much resistance.

The strategy initially worked. Last year's winner made up so much ground on the fresh tires that he was ahead of Norris and Piastri when they returned to the track after their first tire change. But Verstappen wasn't satisfied with the car. "It's so hard to drive, you can't brake," Verstappen radioed. Shortly afterward, he came in for his second pit stop.

The next chase began with fresh tires. He quickly caught up with and overtook Charles Leclerc in the Ferrari. Now only Piastri and Norris were ahead of the Barcelona winner of the past three years. But it didn't seem to work.

But then a defect in Kimi Antonelli's Mercedes caused a safety car period. Everyone was able to quickly change tires. This was Verstappen's opportunity! However, he was surprised to find that he had been given the hardest tire compound. The pit lane responded that there were no other options.

With six laps to go, the showdown unfolded: Piastri defended the lead, with Norris staying behind. Verstappen slipped on the hard tires, and Leclerc then overtook him. And then the team radioed in, telling him to let Russell pass in the Mercedes because he had previously gained an illegal advantage over him. He reluctantly followed the instruction and rammed the Silver Arrow. "It's just a shame that this keeps happening. It never does him any good," said Russell.

However, Verstappen's insider didn't assign blame in the Sky interview. The situation for the team is far too serious overall. After last year's Constructors' World Championship defeat to McLaren, this year's Drivers' World Championship threatens to be over for Red Bull and Verstappen early, against Spanish winner Oscar Piastri and runner-up Lando Norris. "The gap is now becoming frightening," said Marko. "We're about two or three tenths of a second slower. Even Verstappen can't make up that time."

In the spectacular final phase following a safety car deployment, Verstappen's Red Bull collided with the Mercedes of fourth-placed George Russell and was penalized for it. He slipped back to a completely disappointing tenth place. Verstappen wasn't particularly forthcoming afterward: "It was a shame about the safety car. I only had hard tires, and they didn't work. I had no grip. Up until then, it had been a positive race; third place was possible," he told RTL.