Damon Hill gives his take on the 'Max Verstappen vs George Russell' battle at the 2023 F1 Azerbaijan GP

The 1996 world champion Damon Hill has given his take on Max Verstappen's altercation with George Russell at the 2023 Azerbaijan GP sprint race. The two drivers collided in the opening lap of the short race, resulting in side pod damage for the Dutchman.

The collision took place after the Briton tried slipping up the inside of the two-time world champion. The Mercedes driver understeered into the Dutchman, giving him side pod damage for the rest of his stint. The two drivers had a heated exchange of words after the race, resulting in abusive language from Verstappen.

Damon Hill claims that he would have liked for Russell not to have barged into Verstappen's side pod, but understands the need for the move. Speaking on the F1 Nation podcast, Hill gave his two cents on the Max Verstappen vs George Russell issue:

"Since they have made the cars more robust, banging wheels has become more acceptable. But when you go into the side pod of someone and you damage their aero and potentially put them out of the race as well, that is probably a bit too much. It's very difficult to ask people to provide the entertaining race and not take any risks and chances."

Others to blame for Max Verstappen's dominance, claims former Bridgestone head

Max Verstappen

Kees van de Grint, the former head of tire competition at Bridgestone, recently remarked on Max Verstappen's current F1 domination. He stated that it is not solely due to his own skill but also his competitors' shortcomings.

Verstappen claimed an early lead in the 2023 season's Drivers' Championship by winning two races and finishing second twice in the first four races. Currently, Red Bull occupies a strong 1-2 position in the drivers' standings, with Verstappen's teammate Sergio Perez in second place. The Mexican secured victory at the 2023 Azerbaijan GP, narrowing the gap to Verstappen.

According to van de Grint, Verstappen's success is primarily due to his competitors' inability to keep up with Red Bull's technological advancements in the modern ground-effect era.

He claims that Verstappen has faced little resistance from other teams, given his car's superior performance.

“It is, of course, monotonous. I did not expect otherwise, but Max Verstappen is the big winner. His dominance is actually not good for the sport, but you can’t blame him. You have to blame the rest of it.”

However, with Sergio Perez now only six points behind the Dutchman in the standings, it will be interesting to see if Verstappen can secure his third title in the sport.