Max Verstappen and George Russell rowed at the end of the Azerbaijan sprint race Credit: Getty

The pair collided on the opening lap Credit:

And he sought out Russell after the 17-lap race and confronted him over their coming together.

Russell explained he had “no grip”.

But Verstappen snapped back: “Mate, we all have no grip.

“We all need to give a little bit of space.

“But expect it next time the same, you know.”

He then muttered under his breath: “D***head,” with the insult picked up by the microphones.

Pole-sitter Charles Leclerc got a good launch at the start and started to move clear while Verstappen was unusually sluggish off the line and was drawn into a fight with Russell.

The two tangled over a handful of corners, with the Dutchman left furious by Russell’s driving as he brushed the walls of the circuit.

However, it paid off for the Brit who squeezed past into third place as Verstappen dropped to fourth.

But it was short-lived as Verstappen moved back ahead of the Mercedes man at the restart following a safety car period when Yuki Tsunoda crashed into a wall.

While the Japanese driver was not injured, his car was badly damaged with a wheel rolling down the track behind the vehicle.

Yet his AlphaTauri team sent him out for another lap, but he was unable to keep it in a straight line and subsequently retired from the race.

Russell told Sky Sports: “I’m here to fight, I’m here to win.

“I’m not going to hold back because he’s leading the championship.

“He had a lot more to lose than I had. None of the contact was intentional.

“I was doing my best to have a clean fight, I was surprised by his resistance.

“I was surprised he was so angry, he finished P3, he’s got enough experience.”

Verstappen added: “It’s not clarified. I just don’t understand why you need to take so much risk on lap one.

“He understeered into my side pod to create a hole. We all have cold tyres. It’s easy to lock up.

“His beautiful way of explaining, ‘Ah mate, you know, locked up. Ah look at the on-board.’

“Well, it doesn’t make sense.”

Russell was not the only big loser at the restart as his team-mate Lewis Hamilton also dropped places.

Out in front, Leclerc was reeled in by Perez and the Mexican driver made his move into P1 on lap eight.

He then set about extending his lead as he romped to victory, crossing the line 4.5 seconds ahead of Leclerc.

Verstappen was third, Russell fourth and Carlos Sainz in fifth, while Fernando Alonso was sixth and ahead of Hamilton while Lance Stroll took the final point in eighth.

In the Grand Prix tomorrow, Leclerc will start at the front of the grid with Verstappen.

Perez and Sainz complete the second row with Hamilton and Alonso fifth and sixth – and Tussell back in 11th.