Max Verstappen and Lando Norris, who were vying for the lead in the Austrian Grand Prix, exchanged opinions on their spectacular late-race crash. An irate Norris suggested that Verstappen should speak with him about the event.
The Austrian Grand Prix was full of drama as a rare slow pit stop by Red Bull on Lap 52 cut Max Verstappen’s lead over Lando Norris to under two seconds. The McLaren driver seized the opportunity, closing the gap and making several overtaking attempts. However, tensions reached a boiling point on Lap 64 when the two collided at Turn 3, resulting in punctures for both.
While Norris’s car was too damaged to continue, forcing his retirement, Verstappen managed to rejoin the race. However, he was slapped with a 10-second penalty for causing the incident. Despite this, the Dutchman maintained his fifth position due to the significant gap he had built over Nico Hulkenberg in sixth.
Reflecting on the race, Norris couldn’t hide his disappointment. “I thought it was a good race until then,” he said. “We were a bit behind in terms of pace compared to Max, but they made more mistakes. Their messed-up pit stop, which is rare for them, showed they were under pressure. I drove well and kept myself in the fight, but it was difficult with the windy conditions. I just feel let down. The car’s completely destroyed now, and it’s a shame.”
Norris expressed frustration at the outcome, feeling he could have salvaged some points if not for the extensive damage. “I did all I could, gave a fair, respectful battle, but that’s not what I got in return.”
Despite their good relationship off-track, Norris placed the blame squarely on Verstappen, stating, “I did nothing wrong – he was the one in the wrong, so he’s the one that should say something, not me.”
Verstappen, meanwhile, expressed his regret over the incident, noting the need to review the collision. “It’s unfortunate, something you don’t want to see happening,” he commented. “I’ll look back at the footage to understand what went wrong. It was an awkward angle that we touched, causing punctures for both of us, which was really bad.”
The world champion also acknowledged the mistakes made by his team throughout the race, which contributed to the incident. “We put ourselves in that position with errors that we normally don’t make.”
Verstappen believes the incident will be discussed with Norris but emphasized the importance of cooling off first. “Of course, we will talk about it. But it’s better to let things cool off before addressing it. I’m more annoyed with our overall performance and the mistakes we made.”
The clash between Norris and Verstappen added a dramatic twist to an already tense race, leaving both drivers with mixed feelings about their performances and the outcome.
