After a clash over practice positioning at COTA, Max Verstappen was furious at Lewis Hamilton

 

 

AUSTIN, Texas  – The highly contested Formula One rivalry between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton erupted again on the race course, with Verstappen hurling an ugly gesture and an insult.

Although it was only practice, Friday’s battle between the Formula One title candidates made for a tense start to the U.S. Grand Prix, demonstrating that the championship struggle between the Red Bull and Mercedes drivers is just reaching its apex moving into the season’s last six races.

Verstappen and Hamilton were side-by-side approaching the long straight at the starting grid only minutes into Friday’s second practice session.

Although Verstappen claimed to be the first to the spot, Hamilton surged alongside him all the way to the finish line and got the inside line into the bend. It was the kind of high-risk, wheel-to-wheel maneuver that drivers seldom undertake in practice, especially these two, considering their accident history this season.

In a radio transmission to the Red Bull garage, Max Verstappen backed down but was still enraged enough to flick Lewis Hamilton the middle right finger and label him a “stupid idiot.”