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Max Verstappen kicked out a reporter during the Japanese Grand Prix press conference, but this is far from the first time he’s had issues with the media.
Verstappen didn’t want to take questions from Giles Richard of The Guardian, asking him to leave before he began interacting with the press.
His issues reportedly stem from Abu Dhabi, where Richard asked him about his incident with George Russell at the 2025 Spanish Grand Prix and whether that cost him the title race.
Was Max Verstappen right to kick out a reporter during his press conference?
Last year, the reporter asked Verstappen if his Spanish GP move on George Russell cost him the title.
Verstappen’s hostile tantrum towards the media isn’t a good look, especially with Red Bull struggling to get things going this season.
But for long-time fans of Max Verstappen, his outburst towards this reporter is hardly a new experience, as the four-time world champion has a history of tense situations with the media.
READ MORE: Max Verstappen told he’s now in the same boat at Red Bull as Lewis Hamilton was at Ferrari in 2025
Every negative incident Max Verstappen has had with the media
Max Verstappen is an incredibly passionate driver. But sometimes, this passion can get the better of him and lead to him lashing out against the media.
When he feels as though he is being disrespected, disturbed, or even inconvenienced by members of the press, Verstappen will not hold back. Below we have each instance in which Max Verstappen clashed with the media:
2018 – Verstappen threatened to headbutt a reporter
Ahead of the 2018 Canadian Grand Prix, a reporter asked Max Verstappen, who was at this point four years into his Formula 1 career, about his frequent accidents.
Verstappen, whose frustration was evident the moment the question was asked, provided quite a blunt response with a direct threat.
“I don’t know. And like I said at the beginning of this press conference, I get really tired of all the questions. If I get a few more, I might headbutt someone.”
2021 – Profanity-laden tirade when asked about Lewis Hamilton crash at Silverstone
The 2021 championship battle between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen turned quite tense, especially after the pair’s clash at Silverstone.
When Tom Clarkson asked both drivers about the impact of the incident on their wheel-to-wheel driving ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix, Verstappen snapped and went off on him with some choice words.
“Can we just already stop about this? We’ve had so many f—— questions about this, it’s just ridiculous.
“Honestly. Honestly, the whole Thursday we’ve been answering this stupid s— all the time. So, can we just stop about it, please?
“We are racers, we will race, and of course, we’re going to race hard but fair. So we just keep pushing each other.”
READ MORE: Five worst moments of Max Verstappen’s F1 career from 51G crash to shoving rival driver
2022 – Max Verstappen boycotts Sky Sports over Ted Kravtiz comments
After the controversial end to the 2021 title race, Max Verstappen was crowned the winner of the drivers’ championship. However, this result didn’t sit right with Sky Sports’ Ted Kravitz.
During the 2022 season, Kravitz suggested Hamilton was ‘robbed’ of the drivers’ championship, and even referred to him as an eight-time world champion instead of a seven-time world champion.
As a result, Verstappen chose to boycott Sky Sports, noting that the comments from Kravitz, whom he didn’t name in his comments, were disrespectful.
“This year it’s been a constant… yeah, kind of like daily being disrespectful, especially one particular person. And it’s enough, I don’t accept it.
“You can’t live in the past. You just have to move on. Social media is a very toxic place, and if you are constantly being like that live on TV, you make it only worse instead of trying to make it better.
“You keep disrespecting me, and at one point, I’m not tolerating it anymore. That’s why I decided to stop answering them.”
Kravitz and Hamilton ultimately made peace, but the comments from the Sky Sports analyst didn’t sit well with him at all.
What can F1 do to regain Max Verstappen’s approval?
2022 – Verstappen slams media for ‘ridiculous’ narratives of Sergio Perez incident
At the 2022 Brazilian Grand Prix, Max Verstappen, who had already sealed the drivers’ championship at this point, refused to let Sergio Perez, who was fighting for second place in the standings, pass him.
It was a moment that showed the tense relationship between the two drivers, one that stemmed from a miscommunication of Verstappen’s crash at the Monaco Grand Prix earlier that year.
In the aftermath, Verstappen saw his name being dragged through the mud by the media and called them out for portraying him negatively.
“After that race, I looked very bad in the media, but they also didn’t have the clear picture… but to immediately put me down is pretty ridiculous, to be honest.
“Because they don’t know how I work within the team and what the team appreciates about me, so all the things I have read are pretty disgusting.
“I hope one day they actually understand what was going on because it’s just unacceptable behaviour of so many people. also people in this paddock, not only fans, a lot of people, what they have been writing about me is just ridiculous.
“I’m just a bit fed up with all this b——- just going around all the time. At the end of the day, I haven’t done anything wrong; people just misunderstood what was going on.”
READ MORE: Best moments of Max Verstappen’s F1 career including first pole, podium, win, title and more
2025 – Verstappen snaps at reporter for ‘stupid grin’ over Spanish GP question
During the 2025 Spanish Grand Prix, Verstappen received a 10-second penalty for an incident with George Russell, dropping him to P10 from P5, costing him nine points in the title race with Lando Norris.
After a tense battle in Abu Dhabi, Lando Norris managed to win the world championship by a margin of just two points. When Giles Richard of The Guardian asked Verstappen whether the incident cost him the title, the Dutch ace gave a blunt response.
“You forget all the other stuff that happened in my season. The only thing you mention is Barcelona. I knew that would come. You’re giving me a stupid grin now. I don’t know.
“Yeah, it’s part of racing at the end. You live and learn. The championship is one of 24 rounds. I’ve also had a lot of early Christmas presents given to me in the second half, so you can also question that.”
Would Max Verstappen be complaining about F1’s 2026 regulations if he had joined Mercedes?
2026 – Verstappen kicks out reporter over Spanish GP question in Abu Dhabi
Fast forward a few months, and Max Verstappen would see Richard at the 2026 Japanese Grand Prix press conference. Remembering the question from him, Verstappen immediately asked him to leave.
“One second; I’m not speaking before he’s leaving… Get out.. Now we can start.”
Verstappen confirmed that he wasn’t happy about Richard’s question at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix post-race press conference, and wanted him to be removed.
It’s clear that Verstappen doesn’t exactly have the best relationship with members of the press. And while his frustration is understandable, he shouldn’t be reacting so aggressively when he’s unhappy.
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