Former F1 driver Timo Glock has labelled the booing of Max Verstappen at the United States Grand Prix as "incomprehensible".
The three-time World Champion took his 15th win of the season and 50th career victory after a challenging drive at the Circuit of the Americas, battling brake issues having started sixth on the grid.
But with a large Mexican contingent in the crowd supporting Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez, Verstappen was met with a chorus of boos during his post-race parc fermé interview and on the podium.
The number of booing incidents in F1 has increased in recent years, largely directed at Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton, depending which side a certain race's supporter's demographic took from the 2021 championship battle.
Writing in his Sky Germany column, former Jordan, Toyota and Virgin driver Glock said: "Why Max Verstappen was booed after his victory in Austin is incomprehensible to me.
"It may have been due to the issue between Sergio Perez and Red Bull, but Verstappen had nothing to do with that. That's why I can't understand it at all.
It's a shame for the sport because Verstappen is an exceptional athlete who has delivered an incredible performance this year. In my eyes, that's an absolute no-go, and it shouldn't be done."
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Hamilton and Leclerc disqualified
Mercedes driver Hamilton and Ferrari's Charles Leclerc were disqualified from their second and sixth-place finishes after their cars were found to have imposed too much wear on their plank skid blocks.
"Of course, you always try to keep the vehicle height as low as possible," explained Glock.
"In Austin, the big problem was that the track was so uneven and the cars touched down very often.
"The two cars were apparently a few millimetres too low, which was the crucial point that the underbody was no longer within the tolerance range at the respective measuring points.
"That can happen when you push the envelope. Too bad for Mercedes and Ferrari, but probably most annoying for Lewis Hamilton, which also affects the drivers' championship against Sergio Perez.
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E_Fudd
The new owners are trying to make it NASCAR. they have stated so when Bernie left. More entertainment over a more days. More revenue for them. Did any one take note of the lady SKY showed of a rude lady shoving her hand in the face of a McClaren fan when Lewis passed for second? Really kinds of sums up the fans the F1 is looking for now. Liberty Media loves that people are talking about this.
benson-nyc#90806
NASCAR must be really popular in Abu Dhabi when Hamilton was booed there in 2021. Or Silverstone then Verstappen was booed there in 2022, or after Q2 in Mexico of the same year. European F1 "fans" can't seem to accept this is a sport issue, not a US specific issue. Must be hard to swallow that you aren't better than the lowly Americans heh
Bob Myself
Absolutely, love how the land of football hooligans and their riots are so upset that their favorite child got booed by someone holding a camera..lol I was there I heard no booing at all. So this is more manufactured than real ,and at the end of the day ,who cares certainly not Max. In my opinion he relishes in being disliked, if not he wouldn't go to such lengths to encourage it.
benson-nyc#90806
Speaking of soccer, it's funny how people cannot accept that a nation like Mexico, whose #1 sport is soccer, the people of which were raised on yelling "ole" for an hour and a half, would never in a million years boo an opponent or otherwise make themselves vocal.
bug
F1 today is ridicolus. The cars sounds like crap, and they are too easy to drive. This isn't the gladiatorsport it once was. Everybody knows that Red Bull has the most dominant car. It was the same with Hamilton and Mercedes for many years. It is easy to "win" when you dont have any competition. All the changes they do to F1 is like putting makeup on a pig, it doesent make any difference.
Bob Myself
"If you ain't cheating you ain't trying, " Dale Hunter....dominance comes from design and attention to the rules and how close to the line ,or over ,you get away with. So far this season red bull has looked ordinary at one track ,that's really unprecedented. Are they that good , that lucky , or that unscrutinized? We know the rules have been bent to their advantage in the past
bug
Dosen't matter if they bent the rules, dominance is boring. And, it cant be fun to win when you are so dominant. It is no stretch. For the first time in about 20 years, i look up the result before i watch the race. Even when Schumi and Hamilton dominated i didn't do that. That says alot if i may say so. It got boring.
daniel-dibiase#21791
These are the same fans who regularly do homophobic chants at soccer matches. That tells you all you need to know about them.
margaret-tufts#86580
People in Austin were NOT booing Max; they were booing the governor.