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Suzuka, Japan: Max Verstappen ordered a journalist to \u201cget out\u201d of a scheduled media session at Formula 1\u2019s Japanese Grand Prix on Thursday after objecting to a question he asked last year.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not speaking before he\u2019s leaving,\u201d Verstappen said, indicating reporter Giles Richards of British newspaper The Guardian, as the question and answer session was due to begin in Red Bull\u2019s hospitality area.<\/p>\n
![\"Max](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/b27efb8fa8dd6d0065e6a06b157960413fd1ec03.jpeg\")
Max Verstappen ordered a journalist out of his media conference.AP<\/p>\n
Richards approached the table where Verstappen was sitting and tried to plead his case. Verstappen told him to \u201cget out\u201d and Richards left.<\/p>\n
Verstappen indicated he objected to a question Richards asked in December after the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.<\/p>\n
Richards asked Verstappen whether losing out to Lando Norris by two points for the title might lead him to regret an incident earlier in the year when he collided with George Russell<\/a> at the Spanish Grand Prix. That earned Verstappen a time penalty which cost the Dutch driver valuable points.<\/p>\n \u201cYou forget all the other stuff that happened in my season. The only thing you mention is Barcelona. I knew that would come,\u201d Verstappen answered.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re giving me a stupid grin now. I don\u2019t know. Yeah, it\u2019s part of racing at the end. You live and learn. The championship is one of 24 rounds. I\u2019ve also had a lot of early Christmas presents given to me in the second half, so you can also question that.\u201d<\/p>\n Richards wrote in a column for The Guardian on Thursday that he was \u201cdeeply disappointed\u201d by what happened and questioned whether Verstappen \u201cwas simply enjoying the power dynamic?\u201d<\/p>\n Related Article \u201cI still admire Verstappen and I hope we can enjoy a better relationship in the future. Sometimes, difficult, awkward questions have to be asked. That\u2019s the job that comes with the privilege,\u201d Richards added.<\/p>\n Four-time champion Verstappen heads into Sunday\u2019s race at Suzuka, the third of the season, after a difficult start to the year.<\/p>\n He and Red Bull have so far been unable to match the pace of leading team Mercedes and Verstappen has made clear his dislike of F1\u2019s new era of regulations<\/a>, which place more emphasis on electrical power.<\/p>\n Piastri, meantime, was happy to outline what would bring a smile back to his face in the Japanese Grand Prix.<\/p>\n \u201cStart the race \u2013 that would probably help!\u201d joked the self-deprecating Australian.<\/p>\n Hoping to at last make it to \u201clights out\u201d in Suzuka after failing to get to the starting grid in either Melbourne or Shanghai, Piastri wasn\u2019t about to make any grandiose predictions about round three of championship.<\/p>\n \u201cJust to take part in the grand prix, that would be good. We\u2019ll try and at least see the lights come on this week and go from there,\u201d smiled the 24-year-old.<\/p>\n \u201cBut I think we kind of know where we sit in the pecking order, so we\u2019re not expecting too many surprises there. Just executing a solid weekend would be good.\u201d<\/p>\n Editor’s pick Piastri missed out in Melbourne because of a reconnaissance-lap crash<\/a> and then got scuppered by a power unit electrical problem in Shanghai, where his teammate, world champ Lando Norris, also didn\u2019t start.<\/p>\n The pair then had to watch another one-two for Mercedes<\/a>, with Piastri outlining just how far behind the German team McLaren still are.<\/p>\n \u201cObviously, we\u2019re optimistic that we can turn things round quickly and we\u2019ve proven we can do that,\u201d said Piastri. \u201cIt is a massive gap to close, though. Even the sprint race in China, the gap is up to a second a lap that we\u2019re lacking.<\/p>\n \u201cSo even if we bring some of the upgrades we had in 2023 that vaulted us towards the front of the grid, we need more than one of those to close the gap … we need to find quite a lot from various areas.\u201d<\/p>\n Without any track time in the grand prix races themselves, Piastri shrugged: \u201cJust trying to put in good performances, that\u2019s all I can do. I\u2019ve been happy with my qualifying so far this year.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s just I\u2019ve not had any chances to show it in the race. Clearly the picture is that we\u2019re we\u2019re behind Mercedes and Ferrari, so all I can do is just when I\u2019m on track, show what I can do.\u201d<\/p>\n McLaren are third in the overall standings, already 80 points behind leaders Mercedes and \u200c49 adrift of \u200csecond-placed Ferrari.<\/p>\n AP, AAP<\/p>\n News, results and expert analysis from the weekend of sport sent every Monday. Sign up for our Sport newsletter<\/a>.<\/p>\n Save<\/p>\n You have reached your maximum number of saved items.<\/p>\n![\"Verstappen](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/39f5b8f1d1189be5dd7a68fe5fd057c3e292d644.jpeg\")
Verstappen talks to his Red Bull crew in Suzuka.AP<\/p>\n![\"Oscar](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/1774564811_706_7a420c60f122d870865abef549cbddfab916864c.jpeg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Piastri](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/92bd7f2da1e0ea9478e6cddebeabe1407ff0d443.jpeg\")
Piastri arrives in the paddock at Suzuka with his partner, Lily Zneimer.Getty Images<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/1774564814_776_4f575e9c314467e0458f84d491d241d49ff49c852869b9e3f77d6a76a9f06a39.gif\")
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