George Russell isn’t as nice and innocent as everyone once believed, with the Mercedes driver having absolutely savaged Sky Sports commentator David Croft during an interview in Las Vegas.
In anticipation of next November’s first Las Vegas Grand Prix since 1982, Russell, Lewis Hamilton and Sergio Pérez took part in some demo runs down the famous Las Vegas strip to further stoke the excitement for next year’s race.
The 2023 Las Vegas Grand Prix, which will be the penultimate round of the championship, is set to be one for the record books.
The race will not only be the first to take place on a Saturday since 1985; it will also be the latest ever to start.
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As it stands, the official start time for the race is 10pm local time, which is 6am in the United Kingdom.
It all means that whilst fans in Las Vegas are getting ready for their next-level Saturday night entertainment, those in Europe will be waking up early for what is set to be an extraordinary spectacle.
Part of the circuit will be featuring a section of the famous strip, which hosted the demo runs.
A three-way interview was also conducted in front of the fans, with Croft asking Russell, Hamilton and Pérez questions.
Russell appeared to choose violence (metaphorically) at the start of the interview, by asking Croft if he was “allowed” to speak to Pérez.
“Now…” Croft said before Russell interrupted.
“Sorry are you allowed to ask Red Bull drivers questions Crofty?” asked the 24-year-old, hilariously.
“Yeah I am tonight, I got special permission tonight,” replied the commentator.
“Don’t start on me,” Croft laughed.
“Are you allowed to answer?” he asked Pérez, who appeared to look at someone in the audience, perhaps a Red Bull press officer.
“They’re not here,” replied Pérez, in regard to what happened at Mexico City.
“They’re not here it’s absolutely fine,” added Croft.
“What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas,” said the other host.
“Exactly,” Russell said, with a grin on his face.
Russell asked the question to Croft following what happened at the Mexican Grand Prix between Red Bull and Sky, where the Austrians decided to boycott all interviews with the broadcaster during the weekend where Max Verstappen claimed his 14th record-breaking victory.
Verstappen and Red Bull decided to boycott Sky following a number of comments made by the broadcaster following the 2021 season finale and the ‘Cashgate’ scandal, with the Dutchman admitting that “one particular person” was at fault.
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That person is Sky’s veteran reporter Ted Kravitz, who accidentally referred to Hamilton as an eight-time World Champion and said that Michael Masi “robbed” him in 2021.
Kravitz has also previously joked that the 25-year-old can’t win a title under ‘normal circumstances’.
Red Bull confirmed at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez that service will return to normal at the Brazilian Grand Prix, where it’ll be interesting to see how Kravitz interacts with the side.