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F1 Legend Niki Lauda: Verstappen "Belongs in a Mental Institution"

Max Verstappen doesn't think he did anything wrong in his race, and a F1 patriarch thinks that's insane.

High drama in Formula 1, the glamorous racing series that pretty much the whole world cares about except for the United States.

In one of the signature races at Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium, Red Bull Racing's 18-year-old boy king Max Verstappen was accused of behaving—well, steering—abhorrently after a collision in the very first turn.

Verstappen, the only driver not on the Mercedes team to have won a race this season—Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg have claimed the other dozen races run so far, with six apiece—collided with his Ferrari rivals Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen when he tried to cut inside on the opening hairpin.

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All three sustained heavy damage and, after repairs, were cast far back into the field.

But as the race resumed, Verstappen was accused by Vettel and especially Raikkonen—who sit right above the Dutchman in fourth and fifth place in the world championship, respectively—of acting like a little turd. And, watching the highlights, you can see Verstappen baiting Raikkonen several times as he tries to pass, closing the door at the last moment and forcing the Fin to jerk on his steering wheel in order to avoid a crash. In one turn, Verstappen clearly pushes Raikkonen off the track.

After the race, Formula 1 patriarch Niki Lauda said that Verstappen "belongs in a mental institution if he says it's Kimi's fault."

"Drivers shouldn't needlessly endanger each other," he continued to German TV channel RTL. "He went way over the line, when it wasn't necessary. The boy can't see that he did something wrong. I'd better go and talk to his dad, Jos." Jos Verstappen was a (largely unsuccessful) Formula 1 driver in the 1990s.

Here's the kicker: next weekend's race is the Italian Grand Prix in Monza, the home race for the Ferrari team. "Max had better not say where he's staying," said Red Bull boss Christian Horner.