Lando Norris insists ‘people aren’t scared’ of F1 rival Max Verstappen
Max Verstappen doesn't scare anybody - Lando Norris has declared, writes Lewis Larkam in Abu Dhabi.
Lando Norris believes the only thing F1 drivers are scared of about Max Verstappen is his speed.
The season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix has been dominated by an escalating row between George Russell and Max Verstappen after the Mercedes driver accused his Red Bull counterpart of bullying behaviour.
Russell claimed on Thursday that Verstappen had threatened to “purposefully go out of his way to crash into me and 'put me on my head in the wall’” - an allegation the four-time world champion has strenuously denied.
Verstappen’s 2024 title rival and McLaren driver Norris has now waded into the debate.
"I don't think people are scared of Max at all," Norris is quoted as saying by Reuters.
"Are people afraid of what probably he's capable of at times, from a speed perspective? Do you go into some sessions and go 'Shit, Max is feeling good this weekend, he's been good at practice, he's going to be mega?' 100%.
"Same as with football teams and any other sport.
"When people are in good form and they're performing well, you're a little bit afraid of what someone's capable of going out and doing from a performance point of view. No one's scared. It just puts you on the limit.”
Norris added: “Sometimes people can't risk giving Max the fight that he needs. Same with me this year.
"He had nothing to lose this season, at all. I was always in the position of I'm the one to lose. If no-one scores points, it's a Max win. That's basically it. I was always in that vulnerable position.
"Hopefully next year we can start off better and things will change from there on.”
Verstappen wouldn’t put a rival in wall
Asked if he thinks Verstappen is the kind of driver who would put a rival in the wall on purpose, Norris replied: “No”.
"We're passionate about what we do, so we put everything into it, just as a lot of our team do. You're going to feel let down at times, you're going to feel betrayed at times, you're going to feel like people will have you over.
"It's not anything more than that, it's just two drivers who want to win, that's the moral of the whole story really.”
And Norris suspects the involvement of Mercedes boss Toto Wolff and Red Bull team principal Christian Horner in the feud is mainly for show.
"That's all for Netflix," Norris said. “It’s obvious. They love Netflix, all team managers love Netflix."
Lewis regularly attends Grands Prix for Crash.net around the world. Often reporting on the action from the ground, Lewis tells the stories of the people who matter in the sport.
