“I’m not speaking before he’s leaving” – Max Verstappen bans British journalist from F1 press conference

The incident ahead of the F1 Japanese Grand Prix reveals sensitivities still linger over the outcome of last season’s drivers’ championship

Max Verstappen has made no secret in recent years of his disdain for the British media in Formula 1, suggesting that as a group it is institutionally biased against him – but it’s rare for him to engage in direct retaliation.

At Suzuka he took the unusual step of refusing to speak in a pre-event press conference until one of the journalists present – The Guardian’s Giles Richards – left the room: “I’m not speaking before he’s leaving.”

It’s understood Verstappen’s vexation dates back to the post-race press conference at last year’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, a race in which the Dutchman fell two points short of snatching the drivers’ title after a remarkable late-season renaissance. There, Richards asked Verstappen if he regretted his collision with George Russell in the Spanish Grand Prix, for which Max was penalised 10 seconds – resulting in him losing five places in the final order, scoring one point instead of 10.

“You forget all the other stuff that happened in my season,” Verstappen snapped back at the time.

“The only thing you mention is Barcelona. I knew that [question] would come. You’re giving me a stupid grin now.

“I don’t know. Yeah, it’s part of racing at the end. You live and learn. The championship is one of 24 rounds. I’ve also had a lot of early Christmas presents given to me in the second half, so you can also question that.”

The journalist previously questioned Max Verstappen, about his altercation with George Russell in Spain

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images via Getty Images

Supposed media bias is a popular trope within online conversations, the irony being that those expressing such opinions tend to be exhibiting confirmation bias. Nevertheless, Verstappen has regularly complained that he has “the wrong passport” to be treated fairly by various segments of the media.

In 2022, he briefly boycotted Sky Sports F1 after one of its pundits said of the controversial outcome of the 2021 world championship that Lewis Hamilton had been “robbed”. The circumstances of the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, where then-race director Michael Masi failed to follow the correct procedure for restarting the race after a safety car deployment, remain polarising within the F1 fan community.

The FIA’s own investigation into the event later acknowledged that "human error" was to blame for the race being restarted with one lap to run before the chequered flag, rather than finishing with the course still neutralised behind the safety car.

Since then, Verstappen has continued to claim that coverage of on-track incidents in which he is involved tends to be angled unfavourably against him.