New footage of Max Verstappen teasing Fernando Alonso during Belgian GP surfaces
Max Verstappen teased Fernando Alonso while overtaking him at the Belgian Grand Prix.
Footage has emerged of Max Verstappen playfully waving at Fernando Alonso while overtaking him during the early stages of the Belgian Grand Prix. The Dutchman produced a fine recovery drive to finish fourth at Spa-Francorchamps after receiving a 10-place grid penalty for exceeding his engine allocation.
Verstappen crossed the finish line in fifth place but was moved up to fourth when George Russell was disqualified due to his car being underweight. The result saw the Red Bull man enter the summer break with a 78-point lead over Lando Norris at the top of the Drivers' Championship standings.
He made plenty of progress during the first few laps, with Alonso one of several drivers to be overtaken along the Kemmel straight. Footage has since emerged showing Verstappen teasing his Spanish rival by waving at him as he sailed past with DRS assistance.
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The reigning champion followed Alonso's slipstream through the iconic Eau Rouge complex before drawing alongside him on the following straight. At that point, he turned his head to the left and cheekily waved at Alonso before completing an easy pass.
Verstappen is known to have a respectful relationship with his fellow world champion, having previously expressed an interest in teaming up for the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The love certainly appears to be mutual with Alonso stating earlier this year that he sees a lot of similarities between them.
In an interview with DAZN, Alonso said: "Verstappen was maybe a bit crazier in his early days and had some incidents and some problems, but now he is a very decent driver on the track. Off the track, I see a lot of similarities between him and me.
"We have the same interests, we love racing. We like the sport more than the show. We go to the track in the team’s clothes, race on Saturday and on Sunday we go home, and when we have some free time, we go racing. We like simple things and racing.
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"That is what I like most about Max and despite his world titles, he has not changed in that [respect]."
Verstappen, meanwhile, recently named Alonso as one of the greatest drivers in F1 history alongside Ayrton Senna, Lewis Hamilton, Michael Schumacher and Juan Manuel Fangio.
"I think Fernando always shows himself as he is, which is something I admire a lot," he said. "Despite the success he has had, he is still a normal, nice guy. He was also the first Spaniard to be successful in Formula One and become World Champion.
"I have a lot of respect for him. I remember when I was in karting watching him in Formula One and he was always the driver that I was like: 'Yeah, he can race'. That’s something that as a fan you turn on the TV for."
