George Russell says he is not going to wave anybody by after clash with Kimi Antonelli in Canada Sprint

The only highlight from the Sprint Race in Canada on Saturday was the battle between Russell and Antonelli, which became too intense, keeping the Mercedes pitwall on the edge of their seats.

While Antonelli was livid over the team radio, Russell made light of the situation and said: "I didn't really make a lot of it. It is always a challenging corner to overtake on the outside of.

"When you have one corner leading into the next, it is very easy for the driver on the outside to brake much later than you would do ordinarily.

"The inside driver is only going one direction, and I was taking my normal line. That's all I can say," he insisted.

The Briton then added: "In years gone by it has been discussed that you race each other hard but fair, and from my side there is never ill intentions towards anything.

"On the same note, I am not just going to wave anybody by. We are both fighting for our championship.

"It is always team first, and we will talk about it afterwards. I have the peace of mind that it wasn't investigated. If the FIA think it's fine, that's enough.

"I am focused on trying to get pole position this afternoon. We need to have a chat. It is inevitable that if you have drivers one and two most weeks, you are going to have close racing.

"We do respect one another. It is never the intention to collide. I don't think it's a big deal," Russell concluded.

As for Antonelli, he insisted what happened didn't feel fair; he commented: "I feel overall it was a hard battle.

"It felt a bit unfair in the moment, I am not going to lie, but emotion runs very high and it is difficult for us to stay very cool.

"I always try to give my best on track, and I was not going to settle for second place. We will clarify with the team and focus on Qualifying," Antonelli concluded. (Source: Sky Sports F1)