George Russell light-heartedly hinted at a possible investigation into an interaction with Daniel Ricciardo during practice at the 2023 Canadian Grand Prix.
Ricciardo, currently serving as a reserve driver for Red Bull, was spotted on the pit wall during Friday’s session, which saw two red flags due to incidents involving Esteban Ocon of Alpine and Nico Hulkenberg of Haas.
It was during these stoppages that Ricciardo drew Russell’s attention.
“There was a rogue Australian fan in the pit lane, I don’t know what it was,” Russell joked.
Want to work in Formula 1? Browse the latest F1 job vacancies
“He stuck his finger up at me as well when I was waiting to go out. It was around the Red Bull area.
“I need to check the video and see if an investigation should go into this.”
Despite the light-hearted banter, Russell showcased his skills on the track, finishing the day as the second-fastest driver, trailing his teammate Lewis Hamilton.
However, the first practice session was marred by CCTV issues, rendering it obsolete.
As a result, FP2 was extended by 30 minutes to allow teams and drivers to make up for lost time, leading to various strategies being employed during the session.
Mercedes, opting to run their flying laps around 30 minutes later than Red Bull and Ferrari, reaped the rewards on the timesheets.
READ: Ferrari accused of fabricating Lewis Hamilton rumour
Russell commented on the unusual day, saying: “It was a strange day with what happened in FP1 and the extension of FP2.
“It was a reasonably productive session, but we can’t read too much into the timings.
“We conducted our low-fuel qualifying preparation towards the end of the session when the track was quicker. It is bumpy out there, really bumpy.”