Christian Horner has upheld George Russell’s handling of his near-miss in qualifying with Max Verstappen, giving the Dutchman the impetus he needed to take victory at the Qatar Grand Prix.

The Red Bull driver set the fastest lap time in qualifying at the Lusail International Circuit, while the Briton was second fastest.

However, the pair experienced a “hairy” moment – as the Mercedes driver called it – in Q3, which saw them call out to the race stewards.

Verstappen was upset and upset with Russell, who he said was overly aggressive in pushing for a penalty.

Ultimately, the stewards followed Russell’s approach, or at least sided with him, and handed out an unusual one-place grid penalty to the newly crowned four-time drivers’ champion, essentially swapping the front row.

At the start of the race, Verstappen wasted no time in taking the lead, overtaking the Mercedes in the first corner, with Russell dropping to third behind Lando Norris’ McLaren.

The 27-year-old defended victory in the chaotic and chaotic Grand Prix, but his team boss felt that the events of qualifying and the aftermath gave Verstappen the motivation he needed.

“Well, he was annoyed with George (Russell), the way things were unfolding in front of the race stewards yesterday, and he carried that motivation into the race,” Horner said Sky Sports F1.

“And it was clear to see that he went into this race super motivated.

“He had a fantastic start. And throughout the first, second and third gear phases of the start he was the only car to come out of Turn 1 in the lead.”

“You could sense that George somehow felt that too. Then Lando (Norris) obviously had a small lead heading into the second corner, but Max had everything under control.”

“Things just went a little too far.”

After Verstappen’s ninth win of the F1 season and his first win in dry weather since the Spanish Grand Prix in June, he had some good words for Russell.

Following the Dutch driver’s explosive comments, Horner highlighted the pre-race discussions between the pair as Verstappen told the 26-year-old his plans for the start.

“I think there was a little moment between the two of them on the caravan as they were circling the track or whatever earlier,” the 50-year-old added.

“But Max, you know he felt like things just went a little too far yesterday and he was so motivated, even more so than usual, going into this race.”