Lando Norris Fans The Flames Between Verstappen And Russell: "I'm On Your Side"
In a thrilling Azerbaijan sprint race, Max Verstappen called out George Russell over his questionable move in the opening lap. The two drivers had slight contact, causing some damage to Verstappen's Red Bull car. Now, Lando Norris has fanned the flames between the two drivers as the McLaren driver admits whose side he's on.
Verstappen expressed his disbelief over the incident during the sprint race, with him questioning what happened down the radio.
"Did he [Russell] really drive into the side of me? I don't get how he can damage my car and keep the position. I find it ridiculous."
However, Verstappen later made a clean overtake to take back the position from Russell, and Red Bull congratulated him with a sly jab at the British driver. The team said, "Nicely done Max, and without contact," to which Verstappen responded, "Yeah, I know how to do that."
Now, only moments ahead of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, Sky F1 talked to Lando Norris who was then joined by George Russell.
"I told him [George] not to run into any cars today," the McLaren driver told Simon Lazenby.
"I am going to buy you a razor for Miami," Russell retaliated, joking with Lando about his mustache.
"I am actually on your side!" Norris responded, laughing over the drama that made yesterday's sprint so much more interesting.
During the spring, Verstappen eventually built a gap between him and Russell, finishing the race in P3 behind Charles Leclerc and Sergio Perez, his teammate who took the win at the street circuit. The Dutch driver could have potentially finished higher though, if his car wasn't damaged by Russell.
"In terms of the aerodynamic loss, massive," Chief Engineer Paul Monaghan explained. "It's difficult to know precisely because we don't put the car in the wind tunnel like that, but lap time was notable."