Max Verstappen fumes at 'f***ing idiot' Kimi Antonelli after crashing out of Austrian GP

Max Verstappen was taken out on the first lap of the Austrian Grand Prix. He fumed over the radio after being slammed into by rookie Kimi Antonelli at turn three, the Mercedes rookie having lost control of his car and locked up one of his front wheels as he attempted a lunge up the inside.

It was a move that was highly likely to end in disaster and it did, for both Antonelli and Verstappen. Most others managed to avoid the Mercedes but the Dutchman was the unlucky one whose Red Bull was slammed into, spinning it around.

And the force of the impact was enough to end Verstappen's race. He lost the engine as a result of the crash and quickly reported over the radio that his day's work was done, clearly unhappy with what had happened.

"I'm out. I got hit like crazy. F***ing idiots," the four-time Formula 1 champion fumed. But he seemed to have calmed down by the time he climbed out of his car, displaying no aggressive body language to Antonelli who immediately came over to him to apologise for his mistake.

Sign up to our free weekly F1 newsletter, Pit Lane Chronicle, by entering your email address below so that every new edition lands straight in your inbox!

They were the second and third drivers to retire from the Spielberg race, after the unfortunate Carlos Sainz. The Spaniard's rear brakes seemed to be locked on which stopped him from getting going when the formation lap began.

He received a push from some marshals and that meant he was able to start moving. But by the time he returned to the pit lane, after the initial aborted start, those brakes at the back of the Williams caught fire and did enough damage to mean that he would not be able to begin the race when it did eventually get going.

READ MORE: Ferrari F1 legend speaks out after shock McLaren switch revealed in government document

READ MORE: Inside F1 strategy: Bernie Collins lifts lid on McLaren and Aston Martin pressure cooker

Things went from bad to worse for Williams as, on lap 17, Alex Albon also had to retire from the race. He had been running seemingly fine up until his first pit stop but, after getting back out on track, the message came over the radio that he was to return to the garage, the team clearly having spotted something concerning in the data.

That first lap crash between Verstappen and Antonelli brought out the safety car which meant the race was neutralised for a few laps. But the drama continued when it got going again as the two McLaren cars leading the field began a furious battle.

Lando Norris started on pole with title rival Oscar Piastri in third. But the Aussie was quickly on his team-mate's tail having got the jump on Charles Leclerc on the opening lap and soon set about piling the pressure on.

Piastri briefly got ahead after Norris took a short trip through the gravel on the final corner but the Brit struck back, both of them duelling over an extended period as McLaren made it clear to both their drivers that they were clear to race each other, as long as they kept things fair.