Max Verstappen’s inner circle is reportedly unhappy with comments made by Nico Rosberg over the weekend of the Formula 1 Saudi Grand Prix. Former F1 champion Nico Rosberg has suggested in an interview with Sky Sports F1 in Jeddah that two-time world champion Verstappen was absent from a team meeting on Saturday.
This came following Verstappen dropped out of qualifying in Q2 with a driveshaft failure, resulting in him starting 15th. “It’s really not good to see that,” said Rosberg. “Yesterday (Saturday) he left the track very quickly and apparently skipped the team meeting, that’s what we heard. ‘I can’t bear to see it,'” Rosberg won. Apparently yesterday (Saturday) there was talk that he left the circuit too soon and skipped a team meeting. “That’s what we heard.” was known to be unwell leading up to the race weekend. On Thursday he was declared fit for the race weekend following skipping media and circuit work to recover from his stomach ailment. According to Sport1, officials in Verstappen’s camp are angry with Rosberg for presenting the situation in that way. The report said: “You can see how far Rosberg is from reality. Luckily Sky also has Ralf Schumacher and he quickly broke the record. Verstappen finished the race in second place while team-mate Sergio Perez won his first race of the year. After the race, social media erupted into controversy over claims that Max’s father, Jos Verstappen, didn’t congratulate Perez on his victory when he got out of the car. The rumors, which indicate an air of unease among Red Bull’s driver duo, were highlighted at last year’s Brazilian Grand Prix amid a battle over team orders. However, a further camera angle, which was not shown on the live stream, confirmed Verstappen Snr congratulating Perez by patting him on the back.