F1 News: McLaren Chief Blames Unpunished 2021 Max Verstappen Moves For Lando Norris Austrian GP Collision

McLaren's Team Principal Andrea Stella criticizes leniency towards Max Verstappen's aggressive maneuvers.

McLaren driver Lando Norris, right, speaks to Oracle Red Bull Racing driver Max Verstappen after the Formula 1 Lenovo United States Grand Prix at Circuit of Americas on Sunday Oct. 22, 2023. / Aaron E. Martinez/American-Statesman /

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella has spoken out on Lando Norris and Max Verstappen's battle during the Austrian Grand Prix, claiming that the latter's role in the late-race crash is due to events from the controversial 2021 Formula 1 season.

Stella provided a detailed post-mortem of the event in an interview with Sky Sports F1 and did not mince words, pointing directly at what he perceives as a pattern of leniency towards aggressive maneuvers, particularly those involving Verstappen in previous seasons. He explained, as quoted by Motorsport:

“I see it as the entire population in the world will know who is responsible, expect for a group of people [Red Bull, its fans and Verstappen and his fans]. But the problem behind it is that if you don’t address these things honestly, they will come back.

“They have come back today because they were not addressed properly in the past when there was some fights with Lewis that needed to be punished in a harsher way. You learn now to race in a certain way, which we can consider fair and square.”

Stella's remarks did not just focus on the incident itself but employed a historic lens, drawing parallels with similar scenarios involving Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton in the 2021 season. Incidents at Imola, Silverstone, Monza, Jeddah, and a near-collision in Brazil were cited as missed opportunities for regulatory bodies to set a precedent. Stella highlighted the importance of acknowledging these maneuvers and assigning appropriate penalties to deter recurrence. He continued:

 “Yes, there is many episodes. The fact is that we have so much respect for Red Bull, so much respect for Max that they don’t need to do this. They don’t need to do this. This is a way to almost compromise your reputation. Why would you do that?”

"The stewards found that Max was fully at blame in this episode so it is not about racing in a driver’s way, it is about racing in the regulations.

"The regulations must be enforced in a way that is effective, because when a car is out of the race as a consequence of this accident the punishment needs to be proportionate to the outcome. We had, before this episode [the crash], twice moving under braking. I think it is evident and we have to enforce the way to go racing because we want to have fun, we want to enjoy.”