F1 News: Max Verstappen 'Dislikes Everyone Else More Than He Likes Lando Norris'

Does the relationship between Norris and Verstappen change the way they race each other?

Race winner Max Verstappen of the Netherlands and Oracle Red Bull Racing and Second placed Lando Norris of Great Britain and McLaren talk in parc ferme during the F1 Grand Prix of Emilia-Romagna at Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari Circuit on May 19, 2024 in Imola, Italy. / Mark Thompson/Getty Images

It's no secret that Lando Norris and Max Verstappen are good friends outside of Formnula 1. But while Red Bull has been dominant since almost the start of 2022 and McLaren has been a solid midfield team, over this last season, it's mostly been the Silverstone-based team that's been able to make the RB20s sweat.

Since McLaren's upgrades in Austria last year, the team has been able to continue on a development path that has seen Norris take home his first win, becoming one of only three drivers this year to dethrone the reigning champion. Imola was especially poignant in this year's campaign against Red Bull. Norris was eager to strip Verstappen of his lead, and while he was able to apply plenty of pressure to the racer, he ran out of laps to attempt an overtake.

The two obviously enjoyed the battle, with Norris saying:

“It hurts me to say but one or two more laps and I think I would have had him. It’s tough… a shame.

“I fought hard right until the very last lap, but I just lost out a little bit too much to Max in the beginning. He was much better in the first stint and obviously in the second stint we were stronger

“It was a tough first half and a much better second half. One or two more laps would have been beautiful, but just not today.”

Verstappen was very pleased to maintain his lead while feeling the pressure, quoted by F1:

“I couldn't afford to make too many mistakes. Luckily we didn’t, and super happy of course to win here today.”

But does the freindship between the two elite drivers change the way they race each other? I asked Duncan Tappy, Norris' former coach, what he thought of the situation.

"I've been fortunate enough to race my best mates over the years. And ultimately when those lights go out, you don't - you shouldn't really have any friends on track.

"I think recently Verstappen said, if I was going to lose to anyone, I'd prefer it to be Lando. That's only probably because he dislikes everyone else more than he likes Lando. But ultimately he's going to want to beat Lando. Once those lights go out, there are no friends on the track. "

Thanks to Best Online Poker Sites for setting up the interview.