Max Verstappen has been the kind of driver who hardly hides his emotions when his rival, Lewis Hamilton, or any other driver intervenes on the track or shows up as an obstruction. For instance, the United States Grand Prix witnessed the Dutchman lash out at Hamilton for ‘impeding’ during a practice session.

He took to his team radio to call Hamilton a “stupid idiot” and went on to flip the bird at the 7-time world champion. Of course, it was quite harsh from Verstappen, and Hamilton, unsurprisingly, isn’t pleased with the Dutchman’s verbal and physical gestures on the track.

During the press conference ahead of the Mexican Grand Prix, Lewis reckoned that the drivers must always respect each other and keep the derogatory words and actions away, as there are kids watching the races.

“Look, I’ve been here for a long time. So, he’s not my first rodeo, but, I think, at the core level, there has to be respect. One I think about and I hear the things that come out of drivers’ mouths, I do think about young kids. There are kids watching us,” he said.

“And they are looking at us for inspiration and for guidance.”

I don’t share that: Lewis Hamilton

Hamilton further admitted that he has often had the urge to indulge in name-calling this season, but chose to keep it locked in his head. “So, there has been a lot of things that have been said which is definitely not good for young kids that are watching,” he said.

“For me, I just try to remain positive and keep calm and just be respectful to the drivers that I’m fighting regardless if I have a name in my head of what I think they are. I don’t share that. But, it’s pretty easy for me, you know. You laugh it off and you move forward.”

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Overall, Hamilton doesn’t seem to mind Verstappen’s comments, as the duo is still maintaining a decent relationship off the track. But as we head down to the deciding part of the season, things are likely to get intense.

Both the drivers will throw their camaraderie away and it’ll be all about rivalry. Hence, are we in for a rather ugly end to 2021? We’ll know soon enough.

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