Max Verstappen asked if he ‘regrets’ Lando Norris actions that left Brit raging | F1 | Sport
Max Verstappen has no regrets over his conduct at the Mexican Grand Prix, vowing that he will always ‘cross a line’ if he has to in a World Championship fight. The Dutchman’s conduct was widely criticised, including by rival Lando Norris.
Heading into the showdown in Mexico City, the title fight was still well and truly alive, and Norris took the start line with a strong possibility of claiming a victory. Verstappen, meanwhile, was out of that conversation with Red Bull struggling for pace.
The Dutchman responded in his signature ruthless style, shoving Norris wide at Turn Four early in the race. The McLaren driver learned from the battle in Austin earlier in the year, keeping his foot in and stealing away the position, but Verstappen didn’t give up easily.
Turn Eight isn’t typically an overtaking opportunity at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez. However, that didn’t stop Verstappen from making an overzealous lunge, sending both cars onto the run-off area and allowing Charles Leclerc to steam through.
The stewards took a dim view of Verstappen’s aggressive defending, handing him two 10-second time penalties. Norris eventually recovered to finish P2, hot on the heels of race winner Carlos Sainz, but the time lost in his fight with the Red Bull driver may have been the difference between victory and second place.
Asked by Viaplay about his moves that day, Verstappen said: “Yes, but they don’t have the world champion mentality. I will always go to the limit to get the most out of every race and if I have to force it, then that’s just how it goes. Sometimes, you have to cross a line. Well, I do.”
There was no sense of regret either. “No, not at all in that race. I think I won points there,” he continued. “So, like I said, I will always do everything to get the maximum result for a championship. And, of course, sometimes you have to go to the limit or over the limit, and not everyone understands that. Not everyone has that mentality.”
The Mexican GP was far from the only controversial on-track battle between the two title protagonists. Verstappen and Norris came to blows in Austria with disastrous consequences, while in Austin, the Brit was punished after his rival ran him wide at Turn 12.
However, the Red Bull driver believes that it was McLaren who are to blame for Norris coming up short in the Drivers’ Championship title fight. “They’ve had a very good car this year,” he explained.
“But I think it’s also clear that they still had a lot to learn, so to speak, to really constantly compete. Of course, they did well for the Constructors’ Championship, but they could have prepared much better for the Drivers’ Championship.”
