Mercedes star George Russell couldn’t help but giggle as he took victory at the Austrian Grand Prix.

It looked like three-time world champion Max Verstappen or Lando Norris would win as they entered their first duel with 10 laps to go.

However, caught up in a spectacular battle, the pair eventually took down each other in dramatic circumstances.

And as he watched in the break room, Russell happily watched the crash that gave him victory and joked: “We shouldn’t be laughing”, although it was clear he was laughing along with Oscar Piastri, who took second place, and Carlos Sainz, who finished third.

The collision between Norris and Verstappen will be the talk of F1 throughout next weekend’s British Grand Prix at Silverstone.

Looking set to win, Verstappen appeared to indicate that he had problems with his car after a slow pit stop.

As the Dutchman slowed and appeared in Norris’s sight, the pair began an incredible battle for the lead.

However, an error while trying to overtake the McLaren sent him over the track limits for a fourth time, almost certainly giving him a five-second penalty.

This means that, with 10 laps to go, Norris must overtake his on-track opponent and gain a lead of at least 5 seconds.

However, the fight continued after another unsuccessful overtaking attempt when Verstappen appeared to go off track to retain first position.

However, the next attempt dealt a devastating blow to Norris’s McLaren.

The pair collided at a chicane resulting in damage to both cars and while Norris tried to continue, he was forced to retire in the pits, while Verstappen only had to change tyres.

A 10-second penalty would be unlikely to be imposed on the Dutchman, who finished fifth ahead of Haas’s Nico Hulkenberg.

Even NBA superstar Joel Embiid spoke out about the collision, posting on X: “It was the game manager’s fault for that collision. They took too long to give Norris a penalty “

After the race, Russell said: “It was unbelievable, it was a tough fight at the start of the race just to hold on to that P3 and I saw on TV Max and Lando getting pretty tough, I know Lando would want to get that race won.

“The whole team did a fantastic job to get us into this fight and you have to be there to lift the spirits and that’s where we are.