RACING: Smarting Verstappen asks journalist to get out' of media briefing

SUZUKA, Japan – Red Bull’s Max Verstappen asked a journalist to leave his Thursday media briefing at the Japanese Grand Prix, still upset over a question about an incident that may have cost him a fifth consecutive drivers’ title.

“I’m not speaking before he’s leaving,” Verstappen said as he took his seat in Red Bull’s hospitality area at the Suzuka circuit ahead of the third race of the season, telling the reporter to “get out.”

“Now we can start,” he added after the journalist left.

The clash stems from December’s Abu Dhabi season finale, where Verstappen narrowly lost the title to McLaren’s Lando Norris by just two points. The reporter had asked whether Verstappen regretted a June incident with Mercedes driver George Russell at the Spanish Grand Prix, where a 10-second penalty dropped him from fifth to 10th, costing him nine crucial points.

“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,” Verstappen said at the time.

“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 (of the season), so you can also question that,” he added.

After the initial tension, the rest of Verstappen’s press conference went smoothly. The 28-year-old appeared relaxed while discussing his recent sports car race at Germany’s Nurburgring Nordschleife and a stint in a Japanese Super GT car at the Fuji racetrack.

Verstappen, currently eighth in the overall standings after a sixth-place finish in Australia and a retirement in China, has had a challenging start to the season. Known for being frank and fiercely competitive, he has also been a strong critic of Formula One’s new power unit rules.

“This is the reality that we are in now,” he said on Thursday. “You just have to accept that at the moment.”

-Reporting by Abhishek Takle in Suzuka; Editing by Saad Sayeed/Reuters