Russell: 'Red Bull feared Verstappen would get a penalty'

Red Bull filed two protests against Russell after the Grand Prix in Montreal, with the Mercedes driver leading from the front to take his first win of the 2025 season, adding to what has been an impressive start to the Brit's campaign.

The protest that came from the Austrian team was in regard to unsportsmanlike conduct by Russell during the safety car period, braking too hard while under those conditions, which then saw Verstappen overtake him momentarily.

It was not the first time that Verstappen and Russell had to go to the stewards together. At the 2024 Qatar Grand Prix, that happened as well, after which Verstappen called the Brit a ‘backstabber’.

This time, the two came out of the stewards' room more amicably, with the stewards deciding that nothing Russell did was punishable, so the result remained the same, and no penalties were handed out to anyone.

‘’Well, I think, firstly, it was nothing. It seemingly all came from Red Bull instead of Max. I don't think Max was even aware of the protest, and it was pretty clear there was not going to be any penalty,’’ stated Russell in Austria to several media sources, including GPblog.