"F**king idiots": Max Verstappen's reaction to getting punted out of the F1 Austrian GP by Kimi Antonelli

Max Verstappen's pursuit of his sixth victory at the Red Bull Ring came to an end after just three turns as he was taken out by Kimi Antonelli on the opening lap. Infuriated by the teenager's misjudgment, the Dutchman shared a frustrated message over the radio.

Verstappen qualified seventh for the Austrian GP and was a fair way off the front-runners around Red Bull's home circuit. Despite this, he envisioned securing a respectable result around the 10-turn circuit.

The 27-year-old got off the five red lights quickly and hoped to gain a few positions on the opening lap. Moreover, he was in contention to move up the grid in the first few turns.

Antonelli was stuck behind Liam Lawson and Gabriel Bortoleto and misjudged his braking zone. He then swerved and tried to overtake the duo, but ran into Verstappen at turn 3, which ended the pair's race.

Upset from being taken out on the opening lap at a track where he has had a stellar record, the Red Bull driver said on the radio:

"I'm out. I got hit, like crazy. F**king idiots."

This was the first time that Kimi Antonelli and Max Verstappen had made contact on the racetrack.

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Kimi Antonelli apologizes to Mercedes after crashing with Max Verstappen at the Austrian GP

Max Verstappen and Kimi Antonelli at the FP# session in Austria - Source: Getty

Max Verstappen was regarded as a threat for the podium positions at the Austrian Grand Prix, despite his subpar qualifying. With the Dutchman out of the race with no fault of his own, Kimi Antonelli soon admitted his mistake and shared the cause of the whole clash.

The Mercedes driver apologized to the team for retirement after an impressive Canadian GP result and revealed that he locked up his rear axle, as he said:

"Ah, sorry about that... Locked the rear, sorry."

On the other hand, with Verstappen out of the race, the McLaren drivers have a great chance of gaining on the Dutchman in the drivers' standings. Lando Norris had started the race in pole position and controlled the race in the initial phase.

While the Briton had an easier time, Charles Leclerc moved backward at the race start as Oscar Piastri overtook him heading into turn one. Moreover, this provided the Aussie driver the chance of getting his head down and snubbing away a chance of potential victory.

The papaya duo then battled it out on the track for the race lead, but the 25-year-old prevailed which provided him the upper hand in the strategy department. This led Piastri to extend his first stint and try to battle out for the race win with Norris later on in the race.