By Alan Baldwin, Reuters Lando Norris, left, alongside Max Verstappen. Photo: PHOTOSPORT According to McLaren’s Lando Norris, the sole frightening aspect of Max Verstappen is his incredible speed. Mercedes competitor George Russell has charged Red Bull’s four-time world champion with bullying and menacing behavior during a dispute that escalated in Qatar over the past weekend […]
By Alan Baldwin, Reuters
Lando Norris, left, alongside Max Verstappen.
Photo: PHOTOSPORT
According to McLaren’s Lando Norris, the sole frightening aspect of Max Verstappen is his incredible speed.
Mercedes competitor George Russell has charged Red Bull’s four-time world champion with bullying and menacing behavior during a dispute that escalated in Qatar over the past weekend and flared up again in Abu Dhabi.
Norris, who is Verstappen’s primary title challenger this season, has had his own confrontations with the champion but dismissed any notion of intimidation.
“I don’t think anyone is scared of Max at all,” he stated.
“Are people apprehensive about what he’s potentially capable of at times, in terms of speed? Do you approach certain sessions thinking, ‘Wow, Max is on fire this weekend, he’s been impressive in practice, he’s going to be exceptional?’ Absolutely.
“It’s similar to football teams and other sports.
“When individuals are in great form and performing exceptionally well, there’s a slight worry about what someone might achieve from a performance standpoint. No one is frightened; it simply pushes you to your limits.”
Norris, whose team is on the verge of clinching the constructors’ title for the first time since 1998, remarked that sometimes drivers find themselves competing with limitations.
All season, Verstappen has dominated the championship while Norris has been working to diminish the Red Bull driver’s lead, aware that any blunder or failure to earn points would only aid his rival.
The Briton also had to keep the constructors’ fight in mind while Verstappen was essentially racing for himself alone.
“At times, drivers can’t afford to challenge Max the way he requires. The same applies to me this year,” he mentioned.
“This season, he had nothing at stake, not at all. I was perpetually in a position where I was the one at risk of losing. If no one scores, it’s a win for Max. That’s just the reality. I was consistently in that precarious state.
“Hopefully next year we can have a better start, and things will shift from that point onward.”
Norris believed the conflict between Russell and Verstappen was sincere, with both defending their positions.
When asked if he thought Verstappen would intentionally put a rival into the wall, as Russell claimed the champion had threatened, Norris paused for a moment before answering: “No”.
“We’re passionate about our work, so we pour everything into it, just like many in our teams do. There will be times you feel disappointed, betrayed, or like others might have an edge over you,” he elaborated.
“It’s nothing more than that; it’s just two drivers who are determined to win—that’s the essence of the entire situation, really.”
Norris mentioned that this drama would likely appear in the upcoming Netflix Drive to Survive series and implied that the jabs exchanged between Mercedes and Red Bull leaders Toto Wolff and Christian Horner were largely theatrical.
“It’s all for Netflix,” he chuckled.
“It’s pretty clear. They enjoy Netflix; all team managers enjoy Netflix.”
– Reuters
