It’s been two intense weeks, and the third one could be just as heated. Austin and Mexico City saw two particularly fiery duels with different outcomes. The U.S. race first sparked controversy over guidelines, resulting in a 5-second penalty for Lando Norris for gaining an advantage by going off track.
The same guidelines that allowed Max Verstappen to avoid a penalty in Austin eventually worked against him in Mexico, where he received a 10-second penalty for intentionally pushing Norris wide in Turn 4. Verstappen then received another 10-second penalty for gaining an advantage by leaving the track while trying to regain his position from Lando Norris in Turn 8.
The two penalties, applied according to the rules with their respective time increments, sparked discussions. Norris didn’t hesitate to share his opinion after the race, emphasizing that Max Verstappen went beyond the limits.
Norris reiterated this view today, saying that regardless of Verstappen’s statements, he believes the Dutchman knows “deep down” he was wrong during the Mexican GP and that he needs to change primarily for himself, not for others. Norris noted that he was struck by the championship leader’s approach, seeing his only goal as stopping the McLaren driver from passing rather than aiming for a better race result. From Max Verstappen’s perspective, however, slowing down Norris as much as possible meant Norris couldn’t pose a threat to Carlos Sainz, thus preventing him from scoring 25 points.
Lando Norris added that he hasn’t yet spoken with Max Verstappen about the race and that it’s not his place to encourage the Dutchman to change his ways. “We haven’t talked, and I don’t think it’s necessary,” Lando Norris said.
“I have nothing to say. I still have a lot of respect for Max and everything he’s done, not for what he did last weekend, but for who he is and what he’s achieved. But it’s not my place to talk to him. I’m not his teacher or mentor. Max knows what he has to do. He knows he was wrong, he knows it deep down. It’s up to him to change, not me.” – he pointed out – “Max is probably one of the strongest drivers on the grid, if not the strongest. He knows what he can and can’t do and what his limits are. So, he knows what changes to make to his style,” added the English driver.
Lando Norris also said he won’t change his approach when racing against Max Verstappen and feels he’s good at staying out of trouble during high-tension moments, even though he admits he sometimes lacks the aggression needed to challenge a tough competitor like the three-time Formula 1 world champion.
“I think one thing I’ve done well throughout my career is staying out of trouble and keeping the car intact. All these small things add up over a championship and a season, especially in a cost-capped season,” the British driver stated.
“I’ve always aimed to race fairly and cleanly. I think I mentioned last weekend that I may have been too kind, both in attack and defense. But I believe I’ve generally made good decisions in that regard. Sometimes I’ve paid the price for not being aggressive enough, but the rest isn’t up to me. Even when you don’t realize it, there are moments where you have to avoid a potential collision, and maybe you don’t see that on TV. There are times when people realize these scenarios unfold. And I think that’s one of the challenges we face from time to time. But I’m coming into this weekend with new expectations, hoping for clean and fair races. I believe that’s what we should all expect,” Lando Norris added.
Looking ahead to the weekend, the McLaren driver is confident that, as in recent races, the toughest rival won’t be Red Bull—now in a technical slump from which it’s struggling to recover—but rather Ferrari. “Our battle with Ferrari for the Constructors’ has been evident for about ten races. It was clear that McLaren and Ferrari’s momentum was far superior to Red Bull’s. Ferrari has been our biggest rival for probably nine or ten races now. We knew that toward the end of the year, we’d be fighting them, not Red Bull.”
“We need to stay out of trouble. I think we’ve had a few unlucky weekends, both myself and Oscar, like last weekend. But we need to do a better job, and, especially in the future, we need both cars fighting every weekend if we want to keep Ferrari behind us.” – the McLaren driver concluded ahead of the Brazilian Grand Prix weekend.
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