George Russell backs Max Verstappen getting banned for a race if he crosses the 12 F1 penalty point threshold

Mercedes driver George Russell believed that Red Bull driver Max Verstappen's potential race ban, if the latter crosses the 12 penalty points threshold, would not be "unjust." The pair had a controversial moment during the final few laps of the 2025 Spanish GP in early June, which saw Verstappen ramming into the side of Russell's W16.

The Dutch driver was frustrated by the Austrian team's call to give P4 to the British driver after the latter pushed him off the track into Turn 1. Verstappen expressed his displeasure by ramming into Russell's car after seemingly giving the position to the latter.

For his discretion, Max Verstappen was given a 10-second penalty, which demoted him to P10 in the main race, and the stewards also added three penalty points, bringing his tally to 11.

In his interview with Sky Sports, George Russell spoke on the Red Bull driver getting to 11 penalty points ahead of the Canadian Grand Prix and said:

"If he gets to 12 points, it [a ban] wouldn't be unjust. At the end of the day, that's why the penalty points are there. If you keep driving recklessly, you will accumulate points and get punished with a race ban. You've got it in your own hands, and it doesn't go without risk.

"He was trying to run me off the road. I don't think he was trying to intentionally crash into me. He wanted to just sort of scare me a bit, but he just misjudged it. Again, it wasn't going to scare me, it was just all a bit surprising. His actions cost him and they benefited me, so I should be almost thanking him."

George Russell finished the race in P4 and scored 12 points, while Max Verstappen ended up in P10, scoring just a solitary point.

George Russell expresses his surprise over Max Verstappen's post

Formula 1 Spain Grand Prix - Friday - Source: Getty

Mercedes driver George Russell stated that he was surprised after Max Verstappen took accountability for his actions on his social media post after the Spanish GP.

As per F1.com, the three-time F1 world champion reflected on the subject and said:

"It would have been a different feeling had it taken me out of the race but ultimately I benefitted from it and he was penalized. I was a bit surprised to see he had taken responsibility, so fine. But I haven't spoken to him about it. We actually bumped into each other at the airport the other day but I actually completely forgot we crashed into each other a few days prior. No issues."

George Russell sits right behind Max Verstappen in the Drivers' standings in P4 and trails the latter by 26 points heading into Montreal this weekend.