F1 practice LIVE: Max Verstappen fastest in second practice ahead of George Russell and Charles Leclerc

Max Verstappen said he would not hesitate to collide with Lewis Hamilton again after the rivals crashed at Sunday’s Brazilian Grand Prix.

Hamilton and Verstappen tangled following a safety car restart on the seventh lap in Interlagos as they duelled for second place through the Senna Esses.

Hamilton recovered to finish runner-up – behind team-mate George Russell who took his maiden win – while Verstappen, who was forced to stop for repairs in his Red Bull, finished sixth.

The double world champion - who disobeyed team orders late on and opted not to let Sergio Perez overtake him was deemed at fault for the collision by the stewards and hit with a five-second penalty.

After the race, Hamilton, who was involved in a number of altercations with Verstappen during last season’s toxic title battle, said: “What can I say? You know how it is with Max.”

Lewis Hamilton has been backed to “reinvent himself” in a “second or third career” after racing by Mercedes boss Toto Wolff.

Seven-time world champion Hamilton has endured a difficult season off the back of controversially missing out on a record eighth title in Abu Dhabi last year.

The 37-year-old is yet to win a race in 2022 and is currently fifth in the Driver Standings, with Red Bull and Ferrari producing a quicker car than Mercedes after a change in regulations.

While the Silver Arrows are hopeful of being back in the hunt in 2023, Mercedes CEO Wolff praised Hamilton’s “intelligence” in analysing his remaining years in the sport, with Hamilton himself saying that he can see himself continuing for another five years despite his numerous interests outside of racing.

Max Verstappen races to a “different set of limits” when faced with Lewis Hamilton on track, claims F1 pundit Martin Brundle.

Verstappen and Hamilton, arch rivals for the World Championship in 2021, clashed in the Brazilian Grand Prix on Sunday straight after a safety car period, with two-time world champion Verstappen receiving a five-second penalty.

The duo clashed numerous times last year, most notably at Imola, Silverstone and Monza, as they fought thrillingly for the world title won by Verstappen in dramatic and controversial fashion on the last lap of the season-finale at Abu Dhabi.

Yet Sky F1 pundit and ex-Formula 1 driver Brundle says the evidence suggests the Dutchman competes differently with seven-time world champion Hamilton compared to anyone else on the grid.

Another week in Formula 1, another week where the spotlight is on this year’s double world champions for all the wrong reasons. After the cost-cap saga and Sky Sports boycott that has overshadowed Red Bull’s imperious march to Drivers and Constructors glory in the past month, Christian Horner’s team have now completed an unwanted hat-trick. That spotlight shows no sign of dimming.

Max Verstappen’s refusal to obey team orders in the final stages of Sunday’s Brazilian Grand Prix, ignoring an instruction from his trusted race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase to make way for Sergio Perez, is as selfish as it is ill-considered. Unpicking the Dutchman’s indiscretion is multi-faceted but, ultimately, none of them come up in favour of a driver who is doing his reputation no favours despite a year of record-breaking achievement.

First, let’s analyse Verstappen’s potential reasoning, a point of contention he refused to reveal when speaking to the media afterwards. Over team radio, he bluntly stated he “has his reasons” for not allowing Perez – fighting for second in the World Championship against Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc – to take sixth place. More to the point, Red Bull are fighting to secure their first-ever one-two finish in the standings.

Bottom 10 in FP1

11. Pierre Gasly (Alpha Tauri)

12. Esteban Ocon (Alpine)

13. Yuki Tsunoda (Alpha Tauri)

14. Robert Kubica (Alfa Romeo)

15. Logan Sargeant (Williams)

16. Kevin Magnussen (Haas)

17. Pietro Fittipaldi (Haas)

18. Pato O’Ward (McLaren)

19. Jack Doohan (Alpine)

20. Felipe Drugovich (Aston Martin)

Top 10 in FP1

1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)

2. George Russell (Mercedes)

3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)

4. Sergio Perez (Red Bull)

5. Liam Lawson (Red Bull)

6. Sebastian Vettel (Aston Martin)

7. Robert Shwartzman (Ferrari)

8. Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren)

9. Valtteri Bottas (Alfa Romeo)

10. Alex Albon (Williams)

And there we are! It’s a Mercedes one-two in FP1 with Lewis Hamilton setting the quickest lap and George Russell just behind him.

It was a great session for Red Bull rookie Liam Lawson who finishes fifth behind the Mercedes drivers plus teammate Sergio Perez and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc.

Sebastian Vettel ends the session sixth in a strong showing for Aston Martin. A podium place for him this weekend will be a huge moment if he can earn one.