Verstappen tells Lawson to be smarter after Mexico practice clash

Max Verstappen has criticised former Red Bull team-mate Liam Lawson for their collision in Friday’s second practice for the Mexican Grand Prix, saying the Racing Bulls driver should have acted more intelligently while fighting for his Formula 1 seat.

Asked by Sky Sports F1 whether the incident was simply unlucky, the Red Bull driver rejected the idea. He said it would not change his weekend, but that, in Lawson’s place, he would “act a little bit smarter”. The comments came before both drivers were penalised.

Lawson’s Racing Bulls contract expires at the end of 2026. After Friday practice, he was ninth in the drivers’ championship on 77 points, while team-mate Arvid Lindblad was 11th on 38.

Speaking to Motorsport.com and other media, Verstappen said he was pushing on a fast out-lap after minor issues. He said Lawson was travelling slowly but accelerated as Verstappen approached, and alleged that Lawson then tried to run him off the track. Verstappen said it was not smart for someone in Lawson’s position to pick a fight with him.

Verstappen had tried to pass Lawson approaching Turn 12, and the pair entered the stadium section side by side. Verstappen went off at Turn 13, crossed the Turn 14 kerbs and the cars made contact. Debris brought out a brief red flag, and Verstappen continued the session with damage.

The stewards later said Verstappen had been on a preparation lap and Lawson on a cool-down lap before another push. An earlier Motorsport.com report had said both were on flying laps.

Each driver received a one-place grid penalty for Sunday’s race and a penalty point on his superlicence. The stewards called both drivers’ behaviour unacceptable and said they had admitted their moves were unnecessary and clumsy. In choosing grid penalties, the stewards cited a warning at the team managers’ meeting earlier that day and similar practice incidents during the year.

Racing Bulls team principal Alan Permane also described the clash as unnecessary, but said he did not believe either driver was picking a fight. He said both were trying to drive the final sector quickly to get their tyres into the right window for Turn 1.