Alfa Romeo snipes at Giovinazzi: 'I'm not a fan of this kind of manners'

The mud slinging really seems to have started. Antonio Giovinazzi had just been told that there was no place for him at Alfa Romeo when the Italian complained about how money rules Formula 1. It was not long before his team boss Frédéric Vasseur came to his defence.

The normally always good-humoured Vasseur clearly showed his displeasure with Giovinazzi in conversation with Will Buxton. "I saw the comments," Vasseur explains. "Honestly, I'm not a big fan of this kind of attitude: also because the team gave him the chance to do three seasons in F1, and Alfa Romeo gave him the chance to do three seasons in F1. Tons of drivers would have dreamed to do it.

Giovinazzi's marriage to Alfa Romeo looks set to end in a divorce. So, with three races to go, it could be exciting in the Italian-Swiss team's garage. "Well, honestly, I think it's important for him to close the chapter, at least on this season, doing well on track," Vasseur says.

Vasseur ends his comments with a small warning towards his Italian driver: better be careful with the words he chooses, because you never know where the paths will cross again. "Now he (Giovinazzi) will have other challenges," Vasseur said. "He will have to do well in that other challenge, and perhaps he will come back in F1 in the future. But it's a small world and we have to stay professional.”