A few years ago, I attended a VIP dinner for where the guest list was filled with journalists from the biggest news outlets—something I have to admit I’ve never particularly enjoyed. The Daily Car Blog isn’t especially well known, so how we ended up on that list remains a mystery that will probably never be solved.

Anyway, the journalist seated next to me had been an F1 writer during the ’80s and ’90s.

Inevitably, the conversation turned to Formula 1, and he began sharing stories from his time covering the sport. One story, in particular, stood out. He described visiting Nigel Mansell’s wife in hospital while she was recovering from illness. When Mansell walked into the room and saw the journalist there, he grabbed him by the neck and told him to get out.

As he recounted this decades later, the journalist became teary-eyed, though he remained composed. He was a writer, after all, and most writers are delicate souls, unlikely to resort to physical confrontation. A journalist’s true power lies not in physical strength, but in the written word—especially in those days.

Mansell had been angered by an article the journalist had written, which ultimately led to the confrontation. Before hearing this story, I had found the journalist insufferable—acerbic and judgmental.

And I remember thinking to myself: Nigel, thank you. Thank you.

So when Max Verstappen orders a journalist to “get out” of a press conference, there is method behind the madness. Verstappen directed his ire at a Guardian F1 journalist during Thursday’s written media press conference in the Red Bull hospitality suite ahead of the Japanese Grand Prix.

Max Verstappen: Dictator or Saviour?

The Guardian journalist had poked the bear at the 2025 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The specifics don’t really matter, but Verstappen was irked enough to hold a grudge three races into the 2026 F1 season. And if you irk Verstappen enough, he neither forgets nor forgives.

You can argue whether Verstappen was right or wrong, but I can say this: the Guardian journalist in question was certainly not an innocent party. Some journalists are going to be journalists, and Max Verstappen is going to be Max Verstappen.

All I have to say is… thank you, Max Verstappen. Thank you.