The incident between Max Verstappen and George Russell is still a fresh wound. As either fan bases rally on to justify their driver’s argument, Twitter is a live wire right now. With Mercedes fans seething over the Red Bull star, the Orange Army has been up in arms. A live wire.
Thus, with this being a delicate topic, fans were shown the true repercussions of the opening lap contact. However, bringing the truth to light came with some repercussions.
Max Verstappen’s broken sidepod splits Twitter
The size of the car’s damage shocked most fans. Almost the “size of a grown man’s head”, the damage caused by Russell was major.
SO BIG? https://t.co/RBJAk2YVR3
— ccn (@sashenring) April 29, 2023
Ok I knew it was big but DAMN?! https://t.co/fOxJJ0vGpc
— ncthingtosee (@TWncthingtosee) April 29, 2023
omg it's the size of a grown man's head💀💀 https://t.co/iSy9yXm7oF
— xt⚡️ (@Maxveraikkonen) April 30, 2023
https://twitter.com/rbrzoe/status/1652370273545404420?s=20
However, despite there being nothing wrong or offensive about his post, Jon Caller faced a lot of backlash. There were the usual haters on Twitter, calling the entire team “Pricks.”
Redbull are the most disgusting team ever. From Christian Horner, to Max Verstappen, passing by the engineer on the radio to the last mechanic. Pricks. https://t.co/XeosxIEliI
— i.Rush (@DcMBI) April 29, 2023
The mechanic also shared some “fan engagement” on his story, with people from the enemy camp replying to the post. The fan had stated, “Go and kill yourself stupid b*stard.”
A rather unnecessary reaction, but unfortunately a part and parcel of being in the Red Bull or Mercedes teams.
Max Verstappen furious
While the damage looked less extensive on the car, after dismantling the part, the true nature of the small contact came to light. In parc ferme, although still surprising, the damage was comparatively minor.
View this post on Instagram
However, post-Sprint, Christian Horner had explained why this damage was game-changing. “At Turn Two, George is trying to leave enough space but it’s a very tight corner and that’s where the damage to the sidepod was done.”
He also added, “George pushes him too far into the wall. Unfortunately, the result of it was quite a lot of bodywork damage and that cost him quite a bit of performance. When you see a hole like that it’s got to be three-quarters of a second a lap at least, maybe more.”
Even Max Verstappen explained how incidents like this are damaging to all those involved. “There is potential to damage your car as well, not only my car. Of course, I had a hole in my sidepod, but he could also get a puncture and then his race is over as well.”
Now, it’s only a matter of time before Red Bull fixes their components to put their car on the front row of the Azerbaijan GP. With the mean streets of Baku making drivers fall like flies, are we in for more damage?
