No more friends?

Norris rages after crash: “That was unfair three times!”

Lando Norris (right) was not on good terms with Max Verstappen after the Spielberg race.

(Bild: Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

An epic duel in the closing stages of the Formula 1 spectacle in Spielberg could drive a wedge into the friendship between Max Verstappen and Lando Norris. The crash on lap 64 robbed them both of the chance of victory and led to a premature silence. "I think it was unfair of him three times, but there was no warning," raged Norris after the race.

Norris sees the fault with Verstappen and demands an apology from the Dutchman. "If Max says he did nothing wrong, I lose a lot of respect for him," said the 24-year-old. "In a way, I'm not surprised because I know he's going to be aggressive. But I was expecting a tough, fair and respectful fight and I don't feel like I got that from him," he added. "I think it was unfair from him three times, but there was no warning. Then he did it one last time and ruined both our races."

Norris continued: "I'm disappointed in him. He ruined my race and my car. The best parts of the car are for the garbage can." The collision did not just affect Spielberg. "My whole car is destroyed and the parts we need for next weekend. It's just everything we have to take to Silverstone and have disadvantages there," said Norris. "I just expected more from him."

Verstappen: "This is ridiculous"
And Verstappen? "It was a strange contact," said the Dutchman, explaining that he did not have the feeling "that there was anything aggressive in this maneuver". However, the stewards later held him responsible for the collision because he had closed the outside of the corner. Penalty: plus ten seconds and two penalty points. "That's ridiculous," grumbled the three-time champion on the pit radio. "He can just go left or right. What am I supposed to do?" He insisted afterwards that he had not illegally moved his Red Bull again during the braking phase.

Max Verstappen

(Bild: APA/MAX SLOVENCIK)

Marko: "Great fight until it got out of hand"
Verstappen, who started from pole position, had dominated the early stages of the race, but was caught by Norris after a slow second pit stop and a braking incident. The McLaren driver then made several attempts to overtake his Red Bull rival. "It was a great battle at times. Until it degenerated into who was pushing who more, who was breaking the track limits more," said Red Bull consultant Helmut Marko about the gripping finish in Spielberg.

Seven laps before the end, after several attacks, there was a fierce fight and contact in turn 3. Both suffered tire damage and Norris' front wing was also damaged. Both rolled the rest of the way down the track into the pits. Norris had to retire, but Verstappen at least managed to salvage fifth place - extending his championship lead to 81 points.

Verstappen received verbal support from his team boss Christian Horner. "He (Norris; note) did not behave correctly," said the Briton. Marko, on the other hand, said: "I would say that they both drove unnecessarily hard."

Mercedes laughing third
The laughing third in this case was Mercedes. For the "Silver Arrows", the duel between the two squabblers had the best possible outcome. "You can see the two of them up front fighting hard. We know that they are really good friends and it was fun to watch them, that's how I perceived it at the time," said team boss Toto Wolff. "Of course it then got a bit more intense and then we said it was possible that they would collide. It actually happened, they both had a puncture. We couldn't believe it when we saw it."