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Red Bull's Max Verstappen was seen being involved in dangerous driving once again during the first practice session (FP1) of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
The world championship contender followed Esteban Ocon into one of the slower chicanes at the brand-new Jeddah Corniche Circuit but was seen deliberately pushing Ocon off track as they both ran a little wide. The incident occurred during the first practice session today, as the teams and drivers got their first feel of the new track.
Max Verstappen was on a hot lap when he caught up to Alpine driver Esteban Ocon, who was on a recharge lap. Ocon failed to move out of Verstappen's way, causing the Red Bull driver to have a minor lockup in his front-left tire as he braked. Both drivers ran off track as a result.
After Max got the situation under control, he was seen straightening his steering wheel and deliberately blocking Ocon from returning to the track, nearly causing an accident.
The incident was discussed by British racing driver Bradley Philpot on Twitter, who analyzed the situation to conclude it was deliberate.
Max Verstappen has a long history of dangerous driving
With the incident during FP1 of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix being his most recent example of dangerous driving, Max Verstappen has earned a bad reputation for not knowing when to disengage with other drivers, often causing accidents and crashes.
At the 2021 Brazilian Grand Prix, Verstappen forced Hamilton wide on lap 48, nearly causing both drivers to spin out. The incident was then reported to the FIA by Mercedes but was subsequently deemed a racing incident.
At the Chinese Grand Prix in 2018, Max Verstappen crashed into the back of then-Ferrari driver Sebastian Vettel as they headed towards a slow right-hander. Verstappen sensed an opportunity to overtake the German world champion, but in a display of lack of judgment and experience, hit Vettel from the back, resulting in a spin-out for both cars.
Max Verstappen has since improved his racecraft, but today's incident reiterates that he still has a long way to go in getting rid of the unfortunate reputation he has in the sport.
