Max Verstappen admits his collision with George Russell in Barcelona back in June was a “mistake” as he reflected on his F1 world championship challenge, which looks set to fall short.
The Dutchman, chasing a record-equalling fifth consecutive title, is 49 points off leader Lando Norris with three rounds remaining and just 83 points left on the table.
Verstappen’s most controversial moment this season was his collision with arch-rival Russell late in the Spanish Grand Prix, in which the Dutchman deliberately drove his Red Bull car into the side of Russell’s Mercedes.
Verstappen was given a 10-second penalty, dropping him from fifth to tenth, costing him nine points, and he has now acknowledged that the incident was a “mistake on his side.”
"The only point of criticism is obviously Barcelona,” he told Viaplay. "That move itself - and the entire incident - was not good, but that's also because I care a lot. I could have thought, 'this car isn't working anyway, so I let it go'.
"I can't accept - towards myself - stepping out of the car and knowing that I didn't give everything. Then I get angry with myself, so I can't drive at 80 per cent.
"When I get out of the car, I always need to be able to tell to myself, 'I did everything I could’.
"That's why I was so angry in Barcelona - first with what happened on the straight at the restart, then into Turn 1, and then of course when I was told to give the position back. That's when all signs went red.
"That was a mistake from my side, and of course I learn from it.
"Those moments won't happen again next year, even if we're in a similar situation with the car. These are the small things you learn from, but overall, in terms of performance, the season was absolutely good."
Norris leads McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri by 24 points after a dramatic 58-point swing in the last six rounds ahead of the next race, the Las Vegas Grand Prix, on 20-22 November.
