Norris Sends Sly Dig To Verstappen After Mexico Penalties - 'Respect Max A Lot As A Driver But...'

Lando Norris criticized Max Verstappen's defensive tactics while narrowing the championship gap.

Oct 20, 2024; Austin, Texas, USA; McLaren Formula 1 Team driver Lando Norris (4) of Team Great Britain smiles to the crowd during the driver’s parade before the 2024 Formula One US Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images / Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

The Mexican Grand Prix saw an intense battle between Lando Norris and Max Verstappen. The McLaren driver crossed the line in second place, whereas Verstappen, who was handed 20 seconds worth of penalties, finished in sixth position. Ferrari's Carlos Sainz celebrated the victory with his teammate Charles Leclerc in third.

Reflecting on the race, Norris mentioned the difficulties he faced, particularly in the opening laps which were largely about staying in the race and avoiding collisions. He explained:

"It was a very tough race. The first few laps, a lot of it was just trying to stay in the race and avoid any crashes. Carlos drove a very good race, so congratulations to him and Ferrari. I tried my best."

Norris's race was marred by incidents involving Verstappen, which is similar to the United States Grand Prix last weekend. Verstappen made moves that forced Norris off course at Turn 4 and Turn 8. As a result, the Red Bull driver was penalized for "forcing another driver off the track" and for "leaving the track and gaining an advantage." He received ten-second penalties for each offence and has since been handed 2 penalty points on his licence. Commenting on the moves from Verstappen, Norris added:

"I knew what to expect [with Max]. I didn't want to expect that kind of thing because I respect Max a lot as a driver, but I was ready to expect something like this. It's not very clean driving, in my opinion, but I avoided it and it was a good race."

When asked how he was dealing with the pressure of fighting for his first drivers' championship, Norris commented:

"I just keep my head down. I'm doing my best, we're doing a very good job as a team and today we were probably quickest in the end. We'll keep pushing."

The race had a disappointing result for Red Bull as Ferrari overtook them in the Constructors' Standings which leaves the Milton Keynes-based squad in third position. There are now just four races left of the 2024 season, with two of those race weekends including sprint races.

2024 Mexican Grand Prix Results

1. Carlos Sainz
2. Lando Norris
3. Charles Leclerc - Fastest Lap
4. Lewis Hamilton
5. George Russell
6. Max Verstappen
7. Kevin Magnussen
8. Oscar Piastri
9. Nico Hulkenberg
10. Pierre Gasly
11. Lance Stroll
12. Franco Colapinto
13. Esteban Ocon
14. Valtteri Bottas
15. Zhou Guanyu
16. Liam Lawson
17. Sergio Perez
18. Fernando Alonso - DNF
19. Alex Albon - DNF
20. Yuki Tsunoda - DNF