Russell teases Crofty in Las Vegas: "Do you have permission?"

"Are you allowed to ask Red Bull drivers questions Crofty?" teased Mercedes driver George Russell during the launch party in Las Vegas Saturday night local time. David Croft and his colleague Naomi Schiff welcomed the number four in the standings to the podium where he interacted with him and Red Bull driver Sergio Perez.

With a weekend without a Grand Prix before they head to the double-header in Brazil and Abu Dhabi, ending the season, a number of drivers travelled to Las Vegas for the launch party. Las Vegas is on the calendar for 2023 and the city celebrated the event extensively by closing part of the Strip on Saturday night so that Perez, Russell and Lewis Hamilton could give a demonstration with their cars. One that, incidentally, did not go entirely smoothly for Hamilton: the Briton touched the wall with his car.

Part of the evening included an on-stage conversation with the three drivers. There, Russell once again jokingly cited Red Bull's refusal to speak to Sky Sports. Croft joked back that he had special permission tonight. He then turned to Perez to ask if he had permission to answer. The Mexican was no slouch, turned around and seemed to be scanning for someone to give him permission, only to turn back to Croft and laugh that no one was there.

After a relentless stream of negative reports, Max, later followed by his team Red Bull, decided to stop talking to Sky Sports at least during the Mexican Grand Prix. The Dutchman later indicated that the atmosphere on the Internet was toxic and that the way Sky Sports' commentators spoke about him and his team did not contribute to it. Opinions on the stand-off were divided, with a column by Kevin Garside even drawing comparisons between Verstappen and Red Bull on one side and Poetin on the other. Horner later revealed that the team will return to speaking to Sky Sports commentators as normal from the Brazilian Grand Prix.