Verstappen threatens to walk away from F1 after swearing punishment

World champion Max Verstappen has threatened to walk away from F1 after he was punished for swearing in a press conference.

The Red Bull Racing man’s win-less streak continued at the Singapore Grand Prix as Lando Norris ate away at the Dutchman’s championship lead, beating him comfortably to his third victory of the season.

But after Verstappen was ordered by the sport’s governing body the FIA to “accomplish some work of public interest” after using a swear word to describe his car during the last race in Azerbaijan, the 26-year-old said it may encourage him to leave the sport earlier.

“These kinds of things definitely decide my future as well, when you can’t be yourself or you have to deal with these kinds of silly things," he said.

“Now I am at the stage of my career where you don’t want to be dealing with this all the time. It’s really tiring.

“For me, that is not a way of continuing in the sport, that’s for sure.”

While Norris said the punishment was ridiculous, Lewis Hamilton encouraged Verstappen not to carry out his community service as an act of protest against the harsh terms.

“If you can’t really be yourself to the fullest, then it’s better not to speak,” Verstappen continued. “But that’s what no one wants because then you become a robot and that’s not how you should be going about it in the sport.

“You should be able to show emotions in a way. That’s what racing is about. Any sport.

“Anyone on the pitch, if they get tackled, or get pushed or they are not happy with something or there is a frustrating moment, or something they get asked about, it’s quite normal there can be a sort of reaction.”

Verstappen’s comments overshadowed the team’s form under the lights in Singapore. Finishing a distant second to Norris, the Dutchman’s lead atop the standings was cut to 52 points with five races remaining, while team-mate Sergio Perez limped to tenth place as they lost more ground to McLaren in the constructor’s title race, now trailing by 41 points.