“Who is Zak Brown?”: Max Verstappen’s savage response to McLaren boss’ stewards suggestion 

Max Verstappen was involved in a late-race tangle with Lando Norris in the Austrian Grand Prix. Although the two drivers have let go of the incident, McLaren boss Zak Brown has a different opinion.

In a bid to snatch the first position from Verstappen, Norris made a bold move on the outside of turn 3 in Austria. Sensing the move a little late, the triple-world champion moved to the left to defend his place. With nowhere to go, the McLaren driver tagged Verstappen's RB20, causing punctures for both drivers. While the Dutchman managed to pit for fresh tires, the British driver had to call the day off due to heavy damage to his car's floor.

After the race, both Verstappen and Norris spoke with each other to sort out any differences between them. However, Zak Brown has been unable to let go of the incident. The American team principal brought up the issue of Verstappen moving under braking at the driver's meeting ahead of the Free Practice (FP1) session. He suggested moving the incident under a full steward investigation.

When asked by GPblog about Brown's statement, Verstappen burst into laughter.

''Who is Zak Brown?'' Verstappen questioned

Now, ahead of the British Grand Prix, Max Verstappen will likely be looking at making amends by getting back to his winning ways.

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A brief look at Max Vertappen's Austrian Grand Prix weekend with Red Bull Racing

On the back of the wins in Canada and Spain, Max Verstappen began the Austrian Grand Prix weekend on a high note. However, what seemed like an easy win turned into a massive disappointment for the reigning Formula 1 champion.

Verstappen began the weekend by topping the charts in the Grand Prix's only Free Practice session. The onslaught by the triple-world champion continued in the Sprint Qualifying, where he managed to finish all three sessions in pole position.

Despite an early attack by the McLaren drivers, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, the #1 driver managed to keep cool and win the Sprint Race. Following up on the Sprint win on Saturday morning, Verstappen managed to capture pole position for Sunday's race at the Red Bull Ring, holding back the fast-charging Norris and Mercedes-AMG's George Russell.

Verstappen was able to maintain the lead in the first half of the race despite the five lights going out. However, some good strategic calls from McLaren saw Norris close the gap to the Red Bull Racing driver by lap 50 of 71. Although Verstappen was able to hold off the young British driver on two occasions, the third attempt on the outside of turn 3 changed everything for the race leader.

In a failed attempt to defend the lead, the front-runner tangled, causing punctures for both. Verstappen was able to salvage his race by making it to the pits with minimal damage. With a fresher set of soft tires, the Dutchman made a charge to end the race in fifth place, despite getting a 10-second penalty for causing a collision.