Lando Norris says he will “lose a lot of respect” for Max Verstappen if his championship rival doesn’t accept responsibility for causing a collision between them as they battled for the lead of the Austrian Grand Prix.
McLaren’s Norris was attempting to pass Red Bull’s Verstappen with eight laps to go when the pair made contact at Turn 3, with the stewards later giving the Dutchman a 10-second penalty for causing the collision.
Both cars sustained damage, with Verstappen pitting before finishing fifth, while the more severe harm done to the McLaren forced Norris to retire from the race, as Mercedes’ George Russell claimed an unlikely victory.
The end result ultimately aided Verstappen’s quest for a fourth successive drivers’ title, with the 10 points he scored extending his lead over second-placed Norris to 81.
“I’m disappointed, nothing more than that, honestly,” Norris told Sky Sports F1. “It was a good race. I looked forward to probably I’d say just a fair battle, a strong fair battle. But I wouldn’t say that’s what it was in the end.
“Tough one to take. It was a mistake-free race from my side, and I feel like I did a good job but I got taken out of the race, so nothing more than that.”
Asked whether the incident would impact his strong friendship with Verstappen, Norris added: “I don’t know. It depends what he says. If he says he did nothing wrong, then I’ll lose a lot of respect for that.
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McLaren’s Lando Norris and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen engaged in an exhilarating battle for the race lead before the pair crashed into one another, as George Russell ended up capitalising to win the Austrian Grand Prix
“If he admits to being a bit stupid and running into me and just being a bit reckless in a way, then I’ll have a small amount of respect for it.
“But it’s still a tough one to take when we’re fighting for the win and I’m trying to be fair from my side and he just wasn’t. That’s not what I’m thinking about. I don’t care about that now. I’m just gutted for the team.”
More to follow…
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