Max Verstappen had a spiky response to a journalist after being questioned about his Formula 1 title loss to Lando Norris.
The Red Bull driver won Sunday’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, but it was not enough to retain his crown as Norris finished third and pipped him to the championship by just two points.
It is the narrowest margin to decide an F1 championship since 2008, and the final results could have been very different had one or two things played out differently over the 24 race season.
One such incident came at the Spanish Grand Prix when Verstappen, in a moment of madness, deliberately crashed into George Russell.
The Dutchman finished that race fifth but was then penalised and classified 10th, costing him nine crucial points.
Verstappen later apologised for the crash but has faced numerous questions in the last month over whether he ‘regrets’ the incident given how close the championship fight turned out to be.
Asked the same question yet again in the post-race press conference at Yas Marina, the four-time champion was clearly fed up, bluntly replying: ‘You forget all the other stuff that happened in my season.
‘The only thing you mention is Barcelona. I knew that would come.’
After a brief pause, he then snapped at the journalist: ‘Are you giving me a stupid grin now? I don’t know.
‘It’s part of racing in the end. You live and learn. Championship is won over 24 rounds.
‘I’ve also had a lot of early Christmas presents given to me in the second half, so you can also question that.’
The press conference was then quickly ended, with Verstappen and Oscar Piastri, who also missed out on the title, clearly in no mood to speak further.
Verstappen congratulates ‘very good’ Norris
Verstappen was the first to congratulate Norris as he climbed out of his car and later said he was still proud of his and Red Bull’s achievements in 2025: ‘I don’t see it like losing to be honest.
‘He [Norris] has had a very good season. In general it’s been a tough battle between himself and Oscar and at one point I got into the fight.
‘Winning your first is always super emotional. It’s very special because everyone on the grid is always dreaming about that moment.
‘I hope he really enjoys it tonight with his family and, of course, the team.’
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