Max Verstappen is refusing to talk to British F1 broadcaster Sky Sports at the Mexican Grand Prix following comments made by pundit Ted Kravitz.
The reigning double world champion is unhappy at comments Kravitz made in his “Ted’s Notebook” show after the U.S. Grand Prix in Austin, when he referred to Lewis Hamilton being “robbed” of the 2021 title.
Verstappen beat Hamilton to the 2021 championship by passing him on the final lap of the final race in a controversial finish.
The FIA later acknowledged that “human error” from former race director Michael Masi had seen the restart procedure applied incorrectly, forcing a one-lap sprint finish. Masi was sacked as a result.
Verstappen did not speak to Sky Sports after qualifying on Saturday, having been made aware of the comments, and will not do so on Sunday.
Verstappen also plans to do the same with Sky Sports Italia and Sky Sports Germany.
Verstappen and Red Bull are yet to confirm whether the boycott will continue beyond this weekend, with races in Brazil and Abu Dhabi left this season.
In the show, Kravitz was referring to Brad Pitt being in the Circuit of the Americas paddock and what a Hollywood-style script it would have been if Hamilton had claimed his first win of 2022 by beating Verstappen.
“[Hamilton] doesn’t win a race all year, and then finally comes back at a track where he could win the first race all year, battling the same guy who won the race he was robbed in the previous year, and manages to finish ahead of him.
“What a script and a story that would have been. But that’s not the way the script turned out today, was it?
“Because the guy that beat him after being robbed actually overtook him, because he’s got a quicker car, because of engineering and Formula One and design, and pretty much because of [Adrian Newey, Red Bull’s lead car designer] over there.”
It is not the first time Verstappen has taken action against the media.
The Dutch driver boycotted Netflix after growing unhappy at the portrayal of driver rivalries in “Drive to Survive,” meaning he barely featured in the series covering 2021 and his first championship.
Verstappen confirmed earlier this year to he is now ready to cooperate with Netflix this season after talks with the American company and F1 this year.
Source: www.espn.com