"Where is the British press?": Max Verstappen takes a dig at the British media during the post-race press conference

Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen emerged victorious in the rain-soaked Brazilian Grand Prix in Sao Paulo. The triple-world champion took a dig at the British media during the post-race press conference, after seemingly being a soft target for several UK-based publications over the past few race weekends.

While Verstappen's struggles with Red Bull's RB20 race car continued during the entire weekend at Interlagos, he continued to extract the best possible results through the sessions. Despite being demoted one position in the Sprint race for a VSC infringement, the Dutchman pushed for a better result in the Qualifying session. However, his progress was halted in Q2 after a red flag saw him abandon a flying lap.

Adding to his woes was the five-place grid penalty for new Power Unit elements, which dropped him to P17 for the race. Despite the challenges, Verstappen showcased his mastery of wet-weather racing, grabbing victory in a drama-filled Brazilian Grand Prix.

During the post-race press conference, he noticed a large number of British media personnel missing. This prompted the defending world champion to take a dig at the British media. A video clip of the conference was shared on X by a Formula 1 fan.

"I have a quick question here. I mean, I appreciate all of you being here, but I don't see any British press. They have to run to the airport, or they don't know where the press conference is, you know? That's a fair question," he commented (0:00 onward).

Here's a look at the X post, captioned:

"YOU LITTLE MENACE"

With his victory at Sao Paulo, Verstappen has managed to extend his lead over his championship rival Lando Norris to 62 points. With three more races to go, the 27-year-old will look to continue his momentum during the upcoming Las Vegas Grand Prix to become the 2024 world champion.

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"My emotions today have been a rollercoaster" - Max Verstappen on winning the Brazilian Grand Prix after a disappointing Qualifying session

Max Verstappen qualified 12th for the Brazilian Grand Prix but had to start the race in 17th place due to a five-place grid penalty. Against the odds, the Red Bull Racing driver finished the race in first place.

He expressed his delight during a post-race media interaction.

"My emotions today have been a rollercoaster. You know, with qualifying, being really unlucky with that red flag and starting P17, I knew that it was going to be a very tough race," he said.

“Of course I was very frustrated with qualifying. But we tried to just use it as a good motivation in the race. Luckily we had a great start and from there onwards, we were just having a really good feeling in the car. We made all the right calls again, stayed calm, and executed when we needed to, so incredibly happy with today. Honestly, it's crazy. I never expected to go from P17 to P1. I was hoping for good points, but this is absolutely crazy.”

Verstappen is leading the 2024 drivers' standings. The Dutchman is 62 and 86 points ahead of his rivals Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc, respectively.