Leclerc on Verstappen: 'We used to be more intense'

At the Las Vegas Grand Prix, Charles Leclerc started from pole position, followed by Max Verstappen. At the first corner, the two bumped into each other and briefly shot off the track together. They talked about this incident together in the post-race press conference.

Verstappen says he explained to Leclerc after the race what happened at turn one. Discussing events afterwards is something they always do with each other. They used to do this when they used to kart together. ' It's especially fun to talk after when you've had a fun race together and fought each other,' says Max.

'We used to be more intense'

Leclerc adds that the debriefings they used to have were a lot more intense. Verstappen then refers to a viral video that is still going around after a lot of years. In it, Leclerc and Verstappen had had an incident as young boys in which Verstappen claimed that Leclerc had pushed him off the track and Leclerc then calls this ''Just an inchident on the race''. Verstappen repeated this phrase in the press conference after the Las Vegas race.

The Monegasque continued that Max and he know each other very well and for a long time. He did expect Max to go for it in turn one. ''Max has already won the drivers' championship and the constructors' championship and he knows he is going to go for it and that he would give everything in lap one, turn one. I knew that too, so I gave him a bit more space because I have more to lose and especially with the constructors' battle with Mercedes. It was fun and then we talked about it, he explained the situation and that's what it is. It's good''.