Max Verstappen's mindset compared to Michael Schumacher and Ayrton Senna after clash with George Russell

Max Verstappen's mindset of not taking the blame for an incident led to Damon Hill drawing parallels with Michael Schumacher and Ayrton Senna. The Red Bull driver was involved in a first-lap tussle with George Russell at the 2023 F1 Azerbaijan GP sprint. Max Verstappen tried to hang it around the outside against the Mercedes driver but Russell's aggression led to contact between the two drivers.

While Max Verstappen was able to get a jump on George Russell, the damage to his car was severe as he could not mount a challenge against Charles Leclerc or Sergio Perez in front of him. Verstappen was furious with Russell after the race as the two drivers exchanged words but the former world champion had choice words for the Red Bull driver.

Comparing Max Verstappen to Michael Schumacher and Ayrton Senna, Damon Hill said that the Red Bull driver tended to have a similar mindset where he never saw what he did wrong in an incident. Hill said:

“I think this is the sort of mindset we’ve seen in people like Schumacher and Senna. There are just some people who will not accept that they have any part to play in stuff that happens. If you cast your mind back to Monza [2021] with Lewis Hamilton, he just didn’t back out of the corner."

He added:

"He’s done it himself, he’s a hard racer – they’re both hard racers, George and Max, and this is what happens when you get a rock and a hard place together. It looks like you have to have that kind of default, ‘I’m in the right and everyone else is out of step’ [mentality]."

George Russell defends his move against Max Verstappen

George Russell defended his move against Max Verstappen after the race as he admitted to being slightly confused with the Red Bull driver's reaction. Speaking to Sky Sports F1, Russell said:

"I was down the inside and I think as a driver you know the risks when you're on the outside. I'm here to fight, I'm here to win and I'm not going to hold back just because he's leading the championship."

He added:

"I was quite surprised he was still trying to hold it around the outside. It's a street circuit and he has a lot more to lose than I have. None of the contact was intentional, I was doing my best to try and have a clean fight. I was quite surprised he was resistant to the position, I was on the inside."

Verstappen will start the 2023 F1 Azerbaijan GP on the front row and will hope to prevent getting into any wheel-to-wheel tussle on the first lap.