Max Verstappen has told Lando Norris ‘you can trust me’ and vowed to protect his friendship with his British rival.
Verstappen and Norris collided on lap 64 of 71 at last weekend’s Austrian Grand Prix. Norris was forced to retire after he sustained damage from the accident while Verstappen – despite being hit with a 10-second penalty by the stewards – finished fifth to extend his title lead to 81 points ahead of Sunday’s British Grand Prix.
Norris, 24, called Verstappen, two years his senior, ‘reckless, stupid and desperate’ but, at Silverstone on Thursday, withdrew his demand for an apology from the Dutch driver.
+4
View gallery
Red Bull’s Max Verstappen says Lando Norris can ‘trust him’ after Austrian GP collision
‘I didn’t agree with the 10-second penalty,’ said Verstappen, who held clear-the-air talks with Norris on Monday. ‘The only thing that was very important coming out of that weekend was my relationship with Lando.
‘We agreed with 99 per cent of everything so that’s I think a lot already. I always say to Lando when you go for moves up the inside, the outside, you can trust me, I’m not there to try and crash you out of the way.
‘And that’s the same the other way around, because we spoke about that, too. There’s always a human reaction, but I didn’t feel as though anything I did was massively over the top.’
The flashpoint put Verstappen’s driving back in the spotlight following a number of run-ins with Lewis Hamilton when they duelled for the world title in 2021.
+4
View gallery
+4
View gallery
Verstappen (left) says his friendship with Norris (right) is the most important thing
+4
View gallery
Verstappen and Norris collided on lap 64 of 71 of Austrian Grand Prix, causing the Brit to retire
But when asked about the criticism, he replied: ‘I don’t give a s*** about that. I go home and live my life. Like I said, the only thing that I cared about is just my relationship to Lando.
‘Lando’s a great guy. He’s a really nice person who loves Formula One. Of course he loves racing and he’s just very passionate about it.
‘He’s fighting for a second potential win, I’m fighting for my 62nd win. Naturally your emotions are a little bit different.
‘I know that from myself when I fought for those first wins in F1. But that’s fine. That’s why I also said let it cool off a bit and we’ll talk tomorrow.’
News
BREAKING: KSI destroys Luis Alcaraz Pineda to make it two knockouts in one night
KSI fought 2-5 professional boxer Luis Alcaraz Pineda in his second bout of the night at the O2 Arena. KSI took on professional boxer Luis Alcaraz Pineda in his second fight of the night at the O2 Arena. ‘The Nightmare’, who is on…
KSI’s post-fight interview with brother Deji is one of the most wholesome moments of 2022 so far
Things you love to see. KSI and his younger brother Deji embraced in an incredibly wholesome post-fight interview after they both secured victories in Saturday night’s boxing event. After defeats against Jake Paul, Vinnie Hacker and Alex Wassabi in the build-up to this week’s card at the O2 Arena in London, many…
KSI called out five opponents after his double-fight victory, Jake Paul wasn’t one of them
The one name everyone was waiting for him to call out seemed to be missing. KSI has named five potential opponents for his next huge boxing fight after easily dispatching two fighters in one night. The YouTuber dominated Swarmz with…
Boxer KO’s opponent split-second after touching gloves, fans say it was a dirty move
The incident came in a bout between Ruben Torres and Christian Baez at the ‘Path To Glory’ event. Boxing fans have been in debate after footage emerged of a knockout blow that came just milliseconds after two opponents touched gloves….
Jake Paul is set to face UFC legend Anderson Silva in his next fight
His toughest test yet? Jake Paul is set to face UFC legend Anderson Silva in his next boxing match, according to reports. Paul, 25, is currently 5-0 as a professional boxer, with his last victory coming against former UFC champion Tyron Woodley in their rematch…
Anthony Joshua agrees to purse split with Tyson Fury but there’s still an issue
The two British heavyweights are trying to agree to a fight before the end of the year, after Oleksandr Usyk’s fight with Fury fell away. Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua’s heavyweight world title fight could be a step closer, but…
End of content
No more pages to load