George Russell Gives His Verdict on the Max Verstappen-Lando Norris Austrian GP Incident

George Russell Gives His Verdict on the Max Verstappen-Lando Norris Austrian GP Incident

George Russell was the biggest beneficiary of the on-track scuffle between Max Verstappen and Lando Norris during the closing stages of the 2024 Austrian GP. It allowed the Mercedes driver to win his second F1 race; Mercedes’ first since Sao Paolo 2022.

Russell was holding ground in P3 when Norris and Verstappen took each other out at the front. Norris tried to make a move around the Dutchman on lap 64, but they made contact resulting in a puncture for both cars. The McLaren driver had to retire from the race and Verstappen fell to P5, which allowed Russell to take the lead.

Looking back on the Norris vs Verstappen duel, Russell said, “Cool fight” in the cool-down room. To that, Oscar Piastri, who finished P2, replied, “Yeah because you won the race because of it.”

Piastri and Russell both saw this incident in a light-hearted manner. However, Norris and Verstappen may have just kickstarted a rivalry that could bring an end to their friendship.

Off-track, they are very close but several times this season, questions were raised over what would happen if they dueled on the track. Now that they have, Norris admits that their friendship is under threat.

Lando Norris expects Max Verstappen friendship to be in jeopardy

Neither Norris nor Verstappen owned up to the collision after the Austrian GP. They both felt that the other driver was to blame and whereas Verstappen brushed the ordeal off as an unfortunate incident, Norris was more hurt.

When asked if his friendship with Verstappen will end, he replied, “I don’t know, it will depend on him and how he explains. If he claims to be right it will be over. If he admits that he did something stupid then I will understand.”

The FIA investigated the incident in the immediate aftermath. It went in favor of Norris as Verstappen got a 10-second time penalty. However, Norris was forced to retire from the race soon and despite Verstappen’s penalty, he managed to finish P5, extending his lead in the Championship standings even further.

 

Post Edited By: Somin Bhattacharjee
Austrian GP George Russell Lando Norris Max Verstappen Oscar Piastri

About the author

Anirban Aly Mandal

Anirban Aly Mandal is an F1 writer at The SportsRush, with over 1000 articles under his belt, Anirban's love for F1 started when he discovered a copy of F1 2014 on his computer. With over half a decade's worth of time spent religiously following the sport, he’s dived deep into the world of motorsports. However, Anirban's expertise goes beyond just writing - he has also written several academic papers focused on the domain of motorsports and the law. His passion for the sport is so immense that he aspires to work as a legal advisor in the most prestigious racing series in the world someday. When it comes to Formula 1, Anirban finds great pleasure in re-watching classic races and idolizes the likes of Ayrton Senna, Nigel Mansell, and Sebastian Vettel. His top picks include Brazil '91, Silverstone '92, and Germany '19. Outside of the sport, Anirban is an avid sim racer, often found racing on titles like Assetto Corsa, F1 22, and Automobilista. Apart from his interests in gaming, Anirban has a keen interest in philosophy, literature and music.

Don’t miss these