Max Verstappen and Lando Norris’ tussle in the closing stages of the 2024 Austrian GP cost them both a race win. Despite making minimal contact, drastic implications forced Norris to retire from the race. On the other hand, Verstappen finished P5 but still increased his gap to Norris in the Championship Standings by 11 points. This infuriated Norris further and the McLaren driver’s father Adam gave a stamp of approval for his son to resort to drastic measures at the upcoming race weekend.
The next Grand Prix is in Silverstone, where Lewis Hamilton took Verstappen out at the Copse corner in 2021 during their Championship fight. As such, there are memes all over social media speculating whether Norris will do something similar. Surprisingly, Adam Norris liked one such meme on Instagram.
liked by Lando’s dad pic.twitter.com/m6jv6V3JxT
— Mahir (@ScrewderiaF1) July 1, 2024
After the crash between Hamilton and Verstappen three years ago, it was the former who won the British GP despite being given a 10-second penalty. That entire season was riddled with similar incidents involving the two drivers, which ended with a controversial finale going in favor of Verstappen as he won his first World Championship.
Since then Verstappen hasn’t faced any real competition. He cruised to two back-to-back Title wins, establishing himself as one of the sport’s biggest legends. This year, however, Norris has taken the fight to the 26-year-old. And what happened in Austria will motivate him even further.
McLaren and Red Bull are at a crossroads, similar to how Mercedes fought with the Milton-Keynes-based outfit in 2021. If tensions are high and both Verstappen and Norris are on the front row in Silverstone this weekend, the first lap of the British GP could be one to watch out for.
Lando Norris did not expect “reckless” driving from Max Verstappen
In Austria, it was Verstappen’s slow pit-stop that allowed Norris to attack. Once he smelled a win, he went all out in trying to overtake the Red Bull driver. But Verstappen wasn’t going to let go of P1 that easily.
Verstappen defended several divebombs from Norris’ end and was aggressive in his defense. Inevitably, they came too close for comfort on lap 64, bringing an end to the British driver’s race. Whose fault it primarily was is still debatable, but Norris’ stance remains clear.
“I expect a tough battle against Max. I know what to expect, I expect aggression and pushing the limits and that kind of thing, but all three times he’s doing stuff that can easily cause an incident, and in that way, it’s just a bit reckless”, said Norris as per ESPN.
Norris further explained how it looked like Verstappen was desperate for a win in Spielberg. When asked if the incident would fracture their friendship, he suggested that it would depend on what Verstappen had to say about the crash.
