Max Verstappen and Lando Norris will face off again at this week’s British Grand Prix, with Norris enjoying the support of his home crowd.
This follows their collision at the Austrian GP last weekend, Red Bull’s home race. The incident cost both drivers a chance at victory and ended Norris’ bid for a second win after the Miami GP.
Norris had to retire his McLaren and felt impeded by Verstappen, accusing the Red Bull driver of moving under braking. The two friends cleared the air after speaking twice this week.
“I don’t think he should apologize. I thought it was good racing, at times very close to the edge, but we’ve spoken about it and we’re both happy to go racing again,” Norris said on Thursday. “Some of the things I said in the (TV) pen after the race were more just because I was frustrated at the time. A lot of adrenaline, a lot of emotions.”
Verstappen’s primary concern was maintaining their friendship.
“He’s a great guy. Of course he loves racing, he’s very passionate,” Verstappen said. “You also have to realize he’s fighting for his second win, I’m fighting for my 62nd. Naturally, your emotions are a little bit different.”
Verstappen holds 106 podium finishes compared to Norris’ 19 and leads in pole positions 40-2.
Verstappen speculated that Norris might have panicked.
“I always said to Lando, when you go for moves up the inside, outside, you can trust me that I’m not there to try and crash you out,” Verstappen said. “I felt everything that I did was nothing massively over the top.”
A similar incident at Silverstone could remind fans of the 2021 British GP when Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton collided on Lap 1 at the high-speed Copse corner. Verstappen was hospitalized for checks, and Hamilton won, sparking a bitter rivalry that lasted until the final lap of the last race in Abu Dhabi. There, Verstappen overtook Hamilton after a controversial restart to win his first world title, denying Hamilton a record-breaking eighth.
Some observers have compared Silverstone 2021 to Austria 2024, suggesting Verstappen faced undue criticism, according to his former Red Bull teammate Daniel Ricciardo.
“People are probably hammering Max a bit,” said Ricciardo, now racing for the RB team. He defended Verstappen as a tough racer who imposes himself, noting their collision at the Azerbaijan GP in 2018, where neither scored points.
Ricciardo said the late incident at the Red Bull Ring, where Verstappen recovered from a puncture to finish fifth and extend his championship lead over Norris to 81 points, was exaggerated.
“It was hard, but you’re also fighting for a win. So you’re not going to just wave someone by,” he said. “The outcome was bigger than what was actually happening on the track. Was it pushing the edge? Probably. But was it anything dangerous or reckless? From what I’ve seen, no.”
Mercedes driver George Russell, who benefited from the late crash to win in Austria, seemed to agree.
“Max is one of the best and he’s a hard racer,” Russell said. “He’ll push the rules to the limit, as all the top drivers do.”
British Hopes
Fans might see a strong performance from British drivers Norris, Russell, and Hamilton. This season has seen five different race winners in 11 races, compared to just three in 22 last year with Verstappen winning 19.
Verstappen has seven wins this year, while Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz Jr. and Charles Leclerc each have one.
Although Hamilton has won Silverstone a record eight times, he hasn’t won anywhere since the penultimate race of the 2021 season. His recent performances include a third-place finish at the Spanish GP last month. Hamilton, in his final season with Mercedes before joining Ferrari, seeks his 104th F1 win.
Fading Results
Sergio Perez’s form has declined since his new contract with Red Bull through 2026. In three races since signing, the Mexican driver has failed to finish one and has not placed higher than seventh in the other two. Speculation about his replacement could resurface if his performance does not improve, despite the new contract.
