An F1 reporter interviewing Max Verstappen was dragged off the grid before the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix race.
A reporter was dragged out in the middle of an interview just a few minutes before Sunday’s Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, leaving Max Verstappen confused about what happened.
The reigning world champion stormed to his fifth victory of the year at the iconic Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari and was only challenged late on by Lando Norris of McLaren. However, His most memorable experience of the day happened before he got into his car, when a presenter from Viaplay, the official Formula 1 broadcast partner, was escorted off the grid during an interview.
The broadcaster from the Dutch channel was talking with Verstappen as the Dutch star proceeded to the front of the grid for the Italian national anthem before the race. However, without any warning or discussion, a security agent dragged him away in the middle of the interview.
Millions of people saw the incident unfold live around the globe, and videos of the awkward moment have been making the rounds online. The video indicates the reason behind the presenter’s removal was because his accreditation pass did not have the required pink grid tag.
Verstappen looked back with a smile on his face as he watched the reporter disappear in the background before getting into an interview with Sky Sports broadcast and presenter Rachel Brookes before the race.
Brookes was left to be the one to explain to Verstappen why the reporter had been so brutally dispatched and said during the pre-race grid walk segment the reporter had been marched because he didn’t display the required accreditation sticker.
“Max, can I have a quick word? It’s a grid sticker,” she said. “You have to have a grid sticker, I’m afraid.
“So, Max, that start today is so crucial. How are you feeling about it? Are there any concerns today other than that?”
The triple world champion was straight down to business with his response.
“No from our side, it’s a bit unknown on the long run so it’s been a bit difficult,” Verstappen said. “We did have a better balance in qualifying so naturally that will help for the race. Is that enough? I don’t know.”
The reporter was not seen again in the live broadcast after disappearing from the camera frame off the track and the incident triggered a lot of attention from Formula 1 fans, with many feeling the official was far too heavy-handed. One said: “I get he didn’t have a pass but he could’ve been a bit nicer. No need to manhandle him like that.”
A second asked: “lol why was he getting dragged like that?” A third suggested: “He forgot his grid sticker.” Another added: “Sometimes I feel like the only media they respect is British Sky Sports.” A fifth joked: “Can’t wait for the memes to come from this.”
Verstappen overcame McLaren’s challenge on Saturday to tie Ayrton Senna’s record of eight consecutive pole positions. He evened the score with the legendary Brazilian at the same venue in Imola where Senna lost his life thirty years ago.
“You can see, of course, it’s clearly very close now,” said Verstappen. “I had a bit more pace on the medium tyre, but then I didn’t have that pace on the hard. And at the end of the day, we basically came over the line like we almost started the race. It was incredibly close.”
Norris, who won his maiden Formula 1 race two weeks ago in Miami, believed he only needed one more lap to secure a double after finishing with just 0.7 seconds between him and Verstappen.
“It hurts me to say it, but with one or two more laps, I think I would have had him,” said Norris. “I was praying for someone to say we had one more lap. I was pushing like hell.
“It’s a shame. I fought hard right until the very last lap, but I lost out a little bit too much to Max in the beginning. One or two more laps would have been beautiful but it wasn’t to be today. However, we are now at a point where we can happily say we are in the position of Red Bull and Ferrari.
“It is a good sign. We are fighting for first or second now and it is what we have to get used to.”
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc came in third and after seven races this season, it appears that both the Scuderia and McLaren are getting closer to the dominant Red Bull.
F1 is headed to Monaco this weekend for one of the most iconic races on the calendar.
