Max Verstappen firmly denies George Russell's claims about a heated exchange following Qatar qualifying, calling Russell a "backstabber" for misrepresenting their interaction.

The conflict began when Russell approached the stewards about a potential penalty for Verstappen last weekend. Verstappen expressed losing respect for Russell's actions, leading to Russell's claim that Verstappen threatened to "put you on your f****** head in the wall."

Verstappen disputes this version: "That's not true; I didn't say it like that. He's exaggerating again. I can't stand how he attacks me with the stewards and then acts friendly the next day, patting me on the shoulder."

Russell later suggested that Verstappen's behavior has gone unchecked since his 2021 championship battle with Lewis Hamilton, stating, "Could you imagine the roles being reversed? Max losing that championship in the manner that Lewis lost that championship."

Verstappen responded sharply: "George is a backstabber. The way he brings up all this nonsense — he's just a loser. He lies and cobbles things together that don't add up."

When Russell claimed Verstappen's conduct in Hungary caused 25% of his engineering team to seek work elsewhere, Verstappen countered by noting that Red Bull has attracted numerous Mercedes personnel for their engine program.

"They started on pole because of their nitpicking with the stewards, but 300 meters later, they were already behind," Verstappen concluded, dismissing Russell's additional comments as irrelevant.

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