A few days after the Austrian GP clash between Max Verstappen & Lando Norris and the British GP is already upon us. Yet, the discussions seem to be all about the incident from the previous race and not the one that’s on the horizon. However, as the emotions have cooled down, Norris has shared his take on the incident.
“I reviewed everything and got over stuff. I wouldn’t really change what I did, I was fighting. That’s what we want. We want to fight, we don’t want to complain. We don’t want things to end like they did, both from Max’s side and from my side”, said Norris on The Chris Moyles Show on Radio X.
The do or die battle between Max Verstappen and Lando Norris! #F1 #Formula1 #AustrianGP pic.twitter.com/p2sJ7hkelO
— Extreme Cars (@extremecars__) June 30, 2024
Everyone has been criticizing Verstappen for the incident and blaming him for moving and pushing Norris wide. But in all fairness, it looked like hard racing. Right after the race, Norris complained about the championship leader’s moves. However, he seems to have realized what it would take to beat the Dutchman.
Certainly, Verstappen wouldn’t serve Norris the race led on a tray. The Brit would have to fight for it and be patient for the right opportunity. Norris needs to think like Hamilton from the 2021 season, as he’s the closest to Verstappen in the championship. Both of them crashing out would only benefit the three-time champion as there would be one less race to make up those points.
The comments about not wanting a repeat of Austria was a sly dig at Verstappen. The #4 driver had come out with a strong mentality to fight for the championship. Nonetheless, who’s fault was it really at the Austrian GP?
Lando Norris and Max Verstappen’s crash analysis – Was the Dutchman really at fault?
Almost five days since Verstappen and Norris came together, yet the analysis and discussions don’t seem to be stopping. F1TV came out with Jolyon Palmer’s analysis of the crash a few days ago. The analysis suggested that it was Verstappen’s fault as he moved across in the braking zone and didn’t leave enough room on the outside.
PlanetF1 analyzed how the fight began way earlier in the race as they broke down the Lap 23 pitlane incident between the two. Just shows how close the racing was throughout the Grand Prix weekend. On the other hand, Jeremy Clarkson suggests that it was a racing incident with no one to blame.
“He’s not going to change” ❌
Christian Horner has warned Lando Norris to expect the same ‘tough’ racing from Max Verstappen ahead of the British Grand Prix pic.twitter.com/ECdEWKSvyS
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) July 2, 2024
A mixed bag of opinions, but most of them in Norris’ favor. However, looking back at the replay, it does look like a racing incident. Verstappen did leave space on the outside and Norris could’ve taken a bit of the kerb to avoid touching. The Dutchman did the same by going into the grass at the Spanish GP start as Norris pushed him wide.
Hopefully, both drivers have put the incident behind them and have a close, clean fight for the win in Silverstone.
