Norris: 'Drivers are not afraid' of Verstappen's aggression

Max Verstappen Is he the villain that George Russell described? after the episode of heated exchanges in Qatar ? According to the Briton, the four-time world champion behaved in an intimidating and threatening manner after qualifying at Losail last November, where he lost his pole position after a protest from the Briton. Max Verstappen then said he had never seen someone "try to put it upside down on someone with such determination" and that he had lost all respect for George Russell. The driver Mercedes had then confided, a few days later, that the Dutchman had threatened to put him "[his] fucking head against the wall" (sic) during the Qatar Grand Prix.

Intimidating words but which do not scare the other pilots, according to Lando Norris. "I don't think the drivers are afraid of Max, assured the Englishman during the last round, in Abu Dhabi. Are people afraid of what he's capable of sometimes, speed-wise? Do you go into certain sessions thinking, 'Shit, Max feels good this weekend, he's been good in practice, he's going to be on top'? Yes, 100 per cent. It's the same with football teams and any other sport. When people are in good shape and performing well, you get a little bit worried about what someone is capable of doing performance-wise. But nobody's afraid, it just pushes you to the limit."

Norris understands Verstappen's aggressive behaviour

Lando Norris was right at the forefront of this sometimes aggressive behavior of Max Verstappen, especially on the track where he suffered the law of the Dutchman, in Austin and Mexico in particular. However, the Briton recognizes that he understands why his Dutch rival flexed his muscles - sometimes beyond the limit - to defend his position during the duels on the track. “Sometimes people can’t take the risk of giving Max the fight he needs. It’s been the same for me this year. He had nothing to lose this season. I’ve always been in the position of the one who has to lose, the pilot stressed McLaren. If nobody scored points, it was a win for Max. I was still in that vulnerable position. Hopefully next year we can start better and things will change from there."

To conclude this episode of heated exchanges between Max Verstappen and George Russell, Lando Norris affirmed that the quadruple world champion was not the type to send another driver into the wall, considering that the statements of the two drivers involved were made under the influence of adrenaline. “We are passionate about what we do and we put our hearts into it, as do many of our team members. You will feel disappointed at times, you will feel betrayed at times, you will feel like people are going to run you over. It’s nothing more than that, it’s just two drivers who want to win, that’s the moral of the whole story.”, while suggesting that the verbal jousting between the bosses of Mercedes and Red Bull, Toto wolff and Christian Horner, were mainly for form… and for show. “It’s all for Netflix! It’s obvious. They love Netflix, all the team leaders love Netflix.”

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