In a highly eventful sim race on Saturday, Max Verstappen faced disqualification for his intentional collision with German driver Sven-Ole Haase, an act driven by frustration and anger.
As the iRacing-hosted Golden Toast GP progressed, Verstappen steadily climbed the ranks, finding himself in a promising third place after an hour of intense competition.
However, Verstappen’s fortunes took a turn when he was unexpectedly clipped from behind by Hasse, causing a collision with his Team Redline teammate, Diogo Pinto.
The incident left Verstappen and Pinto spinning out of contention, while Hasse surged ahead, seemingly in control. Yet, the reigning F1 champion was not to be deterred.
Determined to regain lost ground, Verstappen swiftly recovered, navigating through the escape area and swiftly setting his sights on his rival once again.
“Sven Hasse and Max Verstappen are going to have a fight if that was in real life anyway,” said co-commentator Ewan O’Leary.
“Max Verstappen, I think, is making a statement,” added lead commentator Arjuna Kankipati as he watched Verstappen cut the track. “Itβs going to be ugly, just give it a sec. Just wait, just wait, here we go.”
With an aggressive maneuver, Verstappen forcefully collided into the rear of Hasse’s car, propelling both vehicles into the treacherous terrain of the gravel and ultimately crashing into the barriers.
“Sven Hasse was not the best friend of Max Verstappen after all of that and unfortunately they are both going to be out,” summed up O’Leary.
Upon reviewing the replay, the commentators reached a unanimous verdict, stating that Verstappen had exhibited an “overreaction” in the heat of the moment.
“Sven Hasse, I mean there’s a hole, he goes for it and makes it wider and then they barge off the corners as Verstappen says no room for you and then it’s into Les Combes where it gets ugly,” said Kankipati.
“Well if that is it then I’m afraid Verstappen has overreacted horrendously for meβ¦ If that was the only part that Verstappen got annoyed about and ran Hasse out through the second part of the chicane then I’m afraid he’s definitely in the wrong and there’s no two ways about it for me,” said O’Leary.
The reigning F1 world champion was disqualified from the race after he was been judged at fault for the collision.
“Well, Max Verstappen has been disqualified from the race. There’s no Formula One this weekend so he’s had his fun. Unfortunately, we won’t be seeing him anymore,” said Kankipati.
The Two-time world champion has always been outspoken about his interest in Sim racing. In a recent interview when discussing his post-F1 career aspirations, he hinted a team ownership in Sim racing further cementing his love for the sport.
