Johnny Herbert, now a former FIA race steward, issued his final warning to Max Verstappen just days before his removal as he told the F1 World Champion that rivals would “rebel” and “push back” against his antics.

Last season Herbert put himself on the frontlines of the Verstappen’s title fight as he publicly chastised the driver for his on-track antics against Lando Norris.

Johnny Herbert has been removed as an FIA steward

Clashing in Austria, Austin and again in Mexico, Herbert called out Verstappen’s “horrible mindset” after penalising the Red Bull driver 20 seconds at the Mexican Grand Prix where he was a steward.

“Verstappen’s driving style was harsh, especially when he’s taking a fellow driver off the track,” said Herbert. “It’s an absolute no-no from me, current drivers, former drivers and stewards.

“I am such a big fan of Verstappen and it frustrates me massively when he drives the way he did in Mexico.

“He doesn’t need to do it, he’s so good in the cockpit and at this point in the Championship, he just needs to stay out of trouble and drive as well as possible.”

More on the FIA and F1’s governance

???? FIA explained: What does it stand for and how does it govern F1?

???? Explained: How the FIA develops potential new F1 rules and regulations

It wasn’t the first time, nor the last, that the now-former FIA steward had something to say about Verstappen. So much so he was forced to deny accusations of bias.

“I’m an opinioned pundit, but when I’m giving penalties I’m not biased,” he said.

But ahead of Wednesday’s announcement that he would no longer serve as an FIA steward in Formula 1, he had one last warning for the sport’s reigning World Champion.

“What was entertaining about last year was Max Verstappen playing the game and he was intimidating everybody on track with comments that he was making about every single driver,” the three-time grand prix winner told Casinoutanspelpaus.io.

“But, they all started to rebel, they all started to push back, they all started to stand up to it and George Russell was one of those that stood up to him.

“I think that is needed in the sport, someone who will stand up to another driver because of the comments that he might have about what happened on the racetrack, that’s what they should do.

“They should have respect for each other and sometimes, they show that respect when you stand up and say, ‘No, that’s not the right thing’, as Russell did to the press.

“And I think that’s a good strength, a very, very good strength to have because as much as Verstappen always wants to intimidate everybody, suddenly there’ll be a question mark, can another driver intimidate him at this particular corner? This particular lap? At this particular time in the championship?

“It’s almost like there’s question marks that have started to come in his head at the moment. But, Verstappen is so confident and so in control of everything that’s going on around him.

“I think Lando Norris is learning how to ask that question and probably sees what everybody else does when standing up to Verstappen.”

Read next: Liam Lawson told ‘Verstappens aren’t the easiest’ in Red Bull ‘minefield’