Max Verstappen appeared unmoved by being booed by furious Ferrari fans at the end of the Italian Grand Prix, insisting: "It's not going to spoil my day."
With Charles Leclerc on pole, the fans gathered at Monza hoping to cheer for a Ferrari victory. Instead, it was Verstappen at the top of the order once again – this time crossing the line behind a safety car after a late mechanical issue suffered by Daniel Ricciardo.
And the Tifosi were not pleased that their racer never got the chance to race for the win. They made their feelings clear with loud booing as the Dutchman completed his post-race interview in the paddock, and again when he took to the top step of the podium.
Not that it was the first time he has faced such hostility. His 2021 title battle with Lewis Hamilton became so bitter that it led to a hostile reception from many spectators at the British Grand Prix earlier in the summer.
"It happens, everyone speaks to me about it with the booing and stuff but at the end of the day I am here to try and win the race which we've done," he said after taking the victory at Monza.
"Some people of course they cannot appreciate that because they are very passionate fans for a different team. It is what it is. It is not going to spoil my day, I am just enjoying the moment."
Meanwhile, Ferrari chief Mattia Binotto later suggested the fans were not booing Verstappen – but instead were aiming their anger at the FIA for how the safety car period had been handled. "Booing a driver is never great, especially Max, the fastest driver on track and a deserving winner, it’s not good," said the Italian.
"The booing from our Tifosi was more towards the FIA and simply by booing the winner, it was trying to boo the FIA. The Tifosi out there believed the safety car could have ended and [we could] have had a couple of laps for the show today, for the battles on track."
By finishing the race behind the safety car, the FIA said the rules had been applied correctly. A statement read: "As the safety of the recovery operation is our only priority, and the incident was not significant enough to require a red flag, the race ended under safety car following the procedures agreed between the FIA and all competitors. The timing of the safety car period within a race has no bearing on this procedure."
