Max Verstappen kicked a journalist out of the media round in Japan – David Coulthard is surprised at the FIA’s lack of reaction
Ex-Formula 1 driver David Coulthard is surprised that the FIA has not imposed any sanctions on Max Verstappen. The four-time world champion had thrown a British journalist out of a media round at the Japanese Grand Prix.
The incident in Suzuka occurred during a press conference in the Red Bull hospitality area. Verstappen simply refused to start the lap until the reporter in question had left the room. The Dutchman’s frustration apparently stemmed from an exchange of blows at the 2025 season finale in Abu Dhabi, when Verstappen lost the world title by just two points to Lando Norris.
The journalist, Giles Richards from the Guardian, had asked Verstappen about a collision with George Russell earlier in the season that had affected his position in the standings. “You’re forgetting all the other things that happened in my season. The only thing you mention is Barcelona. I knew that was coming,” responded Verstappen at the time, annoyed.
“You’re grinning so stupidly at me now. I don’t know. Yes, it’s part of racing in the end. You learn something new. The championship consists of 24 laps. I also got a lot of early Christmas presents in the second half of the year, so you could also question that.”
Coulthard: “Unusual to send someone out of the room”
In the latest edition of the Up To Speed podcast, Coulthard now categorized Verstappen’s action. “Well, the way I see it, it’s probably not something Max will feel good about in hindsight. Because although he’s absolutely right that he doesn’t have to answer the question, it’s unusual to send someone out of the room in that environment,” said the Scot.
“And I’m actually a little surprised that the FIA hasn’t taken a stance on this. I haven’t seen anything about a warning. Because basically, if he used the word ‘shit’ there, he would get a fine.“
Coulthard draws parallels with his own active time: ”I can only compare it with my time as a racing driver. I obviously never won the world championships that Max has, but I was definitely subjected to criticism from various journalists as well.”
Criticism is hard not to take personally
At the same time, Coulthard admits that a driver has to develop a thick skin: “It’s very difficult not to take it personally. I’m sure you don’t look at the comments on social media, because there are those who love you and those who just don’t like you – that’s just the way it is.”
“I’ve certainly come in for criticism. And there was always an undertone – let’s say when they questioned my qualifying performance. That was a legitimate question, but of course it wasn’t easy to be asked the same question over and over again,“ recalls the former Red Bull driver.
”Some journalists were very derogatory. And it’s their right as journalists to say what they see. But it’s hard not to take it personally. No driver is exempt from this.”
The example of Andrea Kimi Antonelli
Coulthard also looks at the current generation: “At the moment, Kimi Antonelli is receiving nothing but praise. Everything. Everyone loves him. His mother will certainly be collecting newspaper cuttings, if that’s still how it’s done today. But as sure as he’s being praised right now, he’ll be criticized at some point in the future – especially if he makes mistakes.“
Finally, Coulthard recalls a very specific criticism from his career: ”I remember a journalist writing: ‘David has an amazing ability to talk about an incident as if he hadn’t even been driving the car at the time’. That really shocked me because he obviously thought I was just making excuses all the time.”
“I didn’t see it that way at the time. But maybe I was also too defensive. I spoke to that journalist, we made peace and put it behind us. But it’s hard to take this public criticism.”
