Max Verstappen refused to speak at a press conference until a Guardian journalist left, citing a question from last season.
FOUR-time world champion Max Verstappen created a flashpoint ahead of the Japanese Grand Prix by refusing to start a press conference until a specific journalist left the room.
The Red Bull driver gestured at a reporter from The Guardian newspaper after sitting down in the team’s hospitality suite.
“I’m not speaking before he’s leaving,” Verstappen stated.
The journalist asked if the demand was due to a question he had posed to the driver last season.
Verstappen replied “yes” and told him to “get out”.
The reporter complied, allowing the press conference to continue.
The journalist later told AFP the incident stemmed from a question asked after the 2025 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Verstappen had missed a fifth world title by two points to Lando Norris at that final race.
The question centred on the impact of a penalty Verstappen received for ramming George Russell at the Spanish Grand Prix.
