Russell rubs this fact in Verstappen's face after beating him to pole

During the on the grid interviews post-qualifying Russell described his pole lap: "Yeah, today was awesome in front of this amazing crowd as well to get the pole. I mean, to be honest, that last lap was probably one of the most exhilarating laps of my life because on my steering wheel you've got the delta and I just saw every corner, I was going one tenth quicker, one tenth quicker. And I got into the last corner and I was six tenths off, I was like, 'alright, this lap is mighty and crossing the line, seeing we were P1 was a real surprise but I was so chuffed with it."

Verstappen currently sits at 11 points on his superlicense. One more and he will suffer a race ban, something Russell jokes about when posed the fierce battle that could potentially ensue between him and the Red Bull Racing driver.

"We're mates (he and Verstappen, ed.), so it's all good," he commented.

When asked if he would go for the win, or continue to play the long-term championship game, Russell said: "I mean I've got a few more points in my license to play with so so yeah that's it," to which the crowd responded by bursting into laughter. Although some boos were also heard, potentially in support of Verstappen.