mechanic Calum Nicholas has defended 's radio outbursts, insisting they have not damaged morale in the team's garage.

Mercedes driver George Russell called out the Dutchman's behaviour in Abu Dhabi as the Brit launched into a furious rant about Verstappen's conduct during race weekends. The four-time world champion's attitude was questioned, and his rival called back to the Hungarian Grand Prix as an example.

Verstappen's behaviour was scrutinised by pundits in Budapest following a string of furious radio outbursts. The 27-year-old called out the strategy and the car as he struggled to compete with McLaren and Mercedes ahead of him.

"He's had the most dominant car in racing history for two and a half years," Russell said in Abu Dhabi. "I'm not questioning his driving abilities one single bit. But the second he does not have the fastest car - let's take Budapest as an example - he crashes into Lewis [Hamilton].

"He slams his whole team, and he loses the plot. Straight away after that race, 25 per cent of his engineering team were sending their CVs to Mercedes, to McLaren, to Aston Martin, because they said they can't deal with a guy like that."

However, Nicholas disagrees and has brushed off concerns about the morale in Verstappen's garage. "We hear drivers on the radio in the midst of the race, in the midst of the battle, and their language can be colourful," he told talkSPORT.

"I think the important thing to remember is that they really are operating in that window where they are under a great deal of pressure. We never sit in the garage and hear those comments and think to ourselves, 'Oh, I can't believe he is being mean to us.' That is not really the nature of the people who work in the sport."

Nicholas also defended drivers who swear during races. Verstappen was slapped with a community service penalty for his foul language in a press conference in Singapore, and FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem is looking to clamp down on the matter even more severely in 2025.

He continued: "I have a six-year-old daughter, and I say to her, 'Look, there is language that is appropriate in some situations and not in others.' I think a lot of times people say, 'These stars, they have a responsibility as role models.'

"And I say that, for me, as a parent, I think that responsibility is mine to teach my kid what is appropriate in some environments and what is not appropriate in other environments. I think that, as a parent, you should take that responsibility on yourself rather than expect everybody else to be your role model."