Max Verstappen has hit back at critics following his radio frustration during the Hungarian Grand Prix.
Verstappen, who has won each of the last three races at the Belgian Grand Prix, which comes up this weekend, became increasingly frustrated at the Hungaroring last week as he finished in fifth place following a coming together with Lewis Hamilton late on.
The three-time reigning Formula One world champion is set for a 10-place grid penalty at Spa this weekend after exceeding his engine allowance for the season.
Verstappen has not won any of the last three races, and has seen his lead at the top of the Driver's Championship cut to 76 points by Lando Norris.
The Dutchman's recent frustrations boiled over in Hungary, spiralling into an X-rated rant at Red Bull engineer Gianpiero Lambiase.
But Verstappen has no regrets.
"People that don't like my language, don't listen in or change the volume down. I'm very driven for success. I've proven that already," said Verstappen.
"I always want to optimise stuff. People can argue that you might not be so vocal on the radio, but that's their opinion.
"My opinion is that it needs to be said at the time to maybe also try and force [things]. That's how it goes.
"We are very open-minded. We are very critical of each other as a team, and that's been working for us very well, so I don't expect that to change."
The last time Verstappen failed to win in four races in a row was in the 2020 season, but Red Bull are showing signs of vulnerability.
And he will face an enormous task to triumph for a 62nd time in the competition, although he is ranked as the fourth driver in F1 history with the most wins without starting from the front of the grid (29).
Verstappen made light work of the power unit components penalty he sustained at the 2022 Belgian Grand Prix, making his way from 14th to win the race.
Should he emerge victorious this time around, he will become only the third driver to win four in a row on Belgian soil after Ayrton Senna (1988 to 1991) and Jim Clark (1962 to 1965).
"If you look at our last few races where we haven't particularly been the fastest, I wouldn't say that with 10 places extra, we have a chance of winning," said Verstappen.
"But a race can always be turned upside down with moments, so you have to be open-minded, try to make the best of it and that's all we will try to do.
"We also don't know how competitive we will be. There's new tarmac, so we need to see how the tyres respond to that as well.
"There's a lot of unknowns with the weather too. Quite a bit of rain is expected tomorrow and Saturday, so we need to follow the weather and our progression this weekend to see how competitive we are."
DRIVERS TO WATCH
Charles Leclerc - Ferrari
Despite being beaten in both qualifying and the main event in each of the last two races by team-mate Carlos Sainz, Leclerc will be keen to get points on the board in Belgium.
Leclerc has not been among the podium places since his maiden triumph at Monaco in May, but the omens are in his favour with the Italian team achieving more victories (14), more pole positions (12) and more podiums (41) at Spa.
Ferrari have enjoyed recent races in Belgium, taking pole in the last two editions, with Leclerc doing so in 2023.
Should they repeat the trick, it will be the second time they have done so after 1974 (Clay Regazzoni at Nivelles), 1975 and 1976 (Niki Lauda in both at Zolder).
Leclerc and Sainz will contest their 79th race as Ferrari team-mates, making them the seventh-highets pair with the most races with the same team in F1, surpassing the 78 of Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg for Mercedes.
Lando Norris - McLaren
While a radio spat of his own at the Hungarian Grand Prix overshadowed an eighth podium place of the season, Norris will be eyeing another impressive run at Spa.
And he now has a fantastic opportunity to close the gap on Verstappen.
The Brit has taken pole position in two of the last four races, after taking just one in his previous 113 starts in F1.
Excluding Hamilton, who did it twice in 2012, Norris could be the first McLaren driver to take back-to-back pole positions since Kimi Raikkonen in 2006 (Germany and Hungary).
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS
Drivers
1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) - 265
2. Lando Norris (McLaren) - 189
3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) - 162
4. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) - 154
5. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) - 149
Constructors
1. Red Bull - 389
2. McLaren - 338
3. Ferrari - 322
4. Mercedes - 241
5. Aston Martin - 69
Hamilton could 'take a holiday' after Sao Paulo disappointment
Lewis Hamilton says he "could happily go and take a holiday" instead of finishing the season after a dismal showing at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
He made early exits in both qualifying sessions and started the race at Interlagos from 15th on the grid.
However, unlike Max Verstappen, who impressively won the race having started in 17th, the Brit struggled to mount much of a fight, coming away from the weekend with just one point after finishing in 10th.
His performance was made to look worse as team-mate George Russell had been battling for the lead but narrowly missed out on a podium place as he finished fourth.
Hamilton only has three races left with Mercedes before his move to Ferrari next season, bringing an end to their 12-year partnership.
But he was left frustrated in Brazil, expressing his disappointment with the car.
"We were just slow," Hamilton told Sky Sports F1. "The car was really, really tough. I do really want to say still a big thank you to the guys in the garage. They turned up super early this morning and still did a great job throughout the weekend.
"The team could have won also, so at least one car was behaving a lot better.
"The car is like a plank of wood. It's like no suspension.
"It's bouncing on the tyres everywhere, and you can't get on the power anywhere. It's just the worst ride, I think the worst ride that we've definitely ever had, particularly through corners. It's just so stiff.
"But hopefully we won't have any more bumpy tracks. I think the last three aren't so bumpy. But yeah, I could happily go and take a holiday."
Norris claims Verstappen 'got lucky' in Brazil as title hopes fade
Lando Norris said Max Verstappen benefitted from a rule "no one agrees with" as he won a dramatic Sao Paulo Grand Prix to leave the McLaren's title hopes hanging by a thread.
Verstappen surged to a terrific victory from 17th on the grid in Brazil, with Norris faltering after starting on pole.
Norris and Mercedes' George Russell – who were vying for the lead – both pitted on lap 29, but that strategy backfired as the red flag was shown following a crash involving Franco Colapinto.
With the race suspended, Verstappen was also able to change tires for the restart, negating Norris' advantage from pitting as the world champion raced to a commanding victory.
Norris had cut Verstappen's drivers' championship lead to 44 points by winning Saturday's sprint race but now sits 62 points adrift with just three races of the season remaining.
The Brit refused to hit out at McLaren's strategy after the race, though, putting his struggles down to bad luck.
"I have faith in the team in what they are saying and they have trust in me," he told Sky Sports F1.
"It was just unlucky. I don't care about the hindsight side of things, that's luck for them, nothing more.
"They got lucky on a rule that no one agrees with. Probably they agreed with it today but every driver has disagreed with it in the past.
"Today it benefitted them, it could have benefitted us if we just stayed out, but that's a stupid thing to think of.
"Just a bit unlucky today, nothing more. Of course, disappointing. Max drove well. He got a bit lucky but that's life."
Verstappen 'wanted to destroy' Red Bull garage before Sao Paulo triumph
Max Verstappen revealed he wanted to destroy the Red Bull garage in the hours before he delivered a wet-weather performance for the ages to win the Brazilian Grand Prix.
Verstappen had been left frustrated after Sunday's delayed qualifying session, when a crash by Lance Stroll and subsequent red flag saw him drop out of Q2.
The Dutchman's early exit saw him finish 12th, but a five-place grid penalty for an engine change dropped him to 17th, presenting an opportunity for Lando Norris to take a seismic chunk out of his drivers' championship lead.
But a determined Verstappen then overcame the rain-affected conditions at Interlagos, climbing to P11 on the very first lap before making his charge into the top 10.
His remarkable comeback, which included five consecutive fastest laps, culminated in him passing Alpine’s Esteban Ocon for the lead on lap 43 before romping to victory.
“My emotions were all over the place, from wanting to destroy the garage (after qualifying) to winning the race,” said Verstappen. “It has been a roller coaster.
“It is unbelievable to win here from so far back on the grid. I was expecting to lose points in the championship.
"Now, I just want clean races. But I am not thinking about clinching the title in Vegas.”
A rain-affected race saw several incidents, with Lance Stroll, Alex Albon, Nico Hulkenberg, Franco Colapinto and Carlos Sainz all failing to finish the race.
But Verstappen remained calm in those conditions, snapping his 10-race winless streak, while also becoming the first driver since Kimi Raikkonen at the Japanese Grand Prix in 2005 to emerge victorious after gaining 16 positions.
And the three-time world champion believed his latest win, which was his 62nd in the competition, was his best one to date.
“The rain came, we stayed out, which was very sketchy, and I had to just keep the car on track,” continued Verstappen.
“It was undriveable in the conditions. I felt like I was driving a boat, or a jet-ski.
“There was a lot at stake because I had to be aware of the championship, so for me this is the best one (victory).
"And it is a massive boost for the team because it has been a tough period.”
Verstappen is now 62 points clear of Norris in the drivers' championship with just 86 points remaining, and can win a fourth consecutive drivers' title at the Las Vegas Grand Prix.
However, he insisted that the season was far from over, acknowledging he must remain perfect in the final three races to get over the line after an up and down season.
“Now it’s of course a great result, which if you look a few hours ago, was definitely the other way around, looking like we were going to lose a lot of points," he said.
“So I’m very happy, but still three tough races [to go], so we just need to stay calm and make no mistakes.
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