Tensions between Max Verstappen and Lando Norris were expected to be at an all-time high heading into the British GP owing to their crash in Spielberg last weekend. Now, having swept the matter under the rug, Norris revealed that they had come up with a plan to keep everyone talking. A make-believe fistfight was in the works until Norris decided not to go ahead with it.
Speaking to the fans ahead of the race in Silverstone, Norris addressed the situation between himself and Verstappen. Claiming they resolved the matter, Norris quipped about a budding evil plan.
“I went to see Max [Verstappen] yesterday, actually, “ the McLaren star said. “We had a little fistfight. We actually joked that he was gonna come in with a neck brace on and a black eye. But, I didn’t do it”
lando said that he and Max talked yesterday and they joked about staging like they had a fist fight pic.twitter.com/v6XKZcg8d1
— laura ᵕ̈ (@everythinglando) July 4, 2024
The build-up to the British GP had a lot of conversations surrounding the collision in Austria. Podcasts, media outlets, and social media, all had their say on the matter and there was a clear division among the F1 community. The initial feeling was that Verstappen was the one at fault.
But soon, experts chimed in to say that Norris had a lot of room to avoid contact. Norris, who spoke about being let down by Verstappen after the Austrian GP, also admitted that the Dutch driver needn’t apologize for what happened.
One week has passed since the incident, and both Verstappen and Norris now share a common understanding.
Verstappen and Norris know what to expect from each other
Good friends away from the track, Norris and Verstappen are well aware of how the other party operates. Thus, when watching the footage of their collision together, the duo agreed on 99% of the things that happened, as reported by GP Blog.
Asked Max whether he felt he’s taken a lot of undeserved criticism over the last few days:
“I don’t give a shit about that. I go home, I live my life.
“The only thing that I cared about is just my relationship with Lando.” #F1 #BritishGP pic.twitter.com/ECgbaoWCqT
— Thomas Maher (@thomasmaheronf1) July 4, 2024
“I always said to Lando, when you go for moves up the inside, the outside, you can trust me that I’m not there to try and crash you out of the way,” said Verstappen.
The Red Bull driver also doesn’t think he did anything “massively over the top.” Hence, he didn’t concern himself with the criticism he faced once he went home. He admitted that all that mattered to him was his friendship with Norris.
