Alex McCurthy
Max Verstappen fired back at McLaren after a dramatic finale to the US Grand Prix, accusing the team of whinging too much. Red Bull’s driver came back with this sharp riposte following a hot row between the two teams as Verstappen and McLaren driver Lando Norris collide in a battle that will run all the way to the world championship.
In Austin on Sunday, McLaren had every reason to be steaming after Norris tried to outbrake Verstappen for third – was forced wide by the Dutchman, winning him a five-second penalty. Norris retained his position on track, but was demoted to fourth, losing crucial points in his championship race against Verstappen who now leads by 57 points with five races remaining.
As McLaren’s team principal Andrea Stella fended off the stewards’ ruling by countering that both drivers had left the circuit and were therefore not guilty of any infraction meriting a penalty. Of course, Verstappen disagreed, terming the criticism meritless, an assertion he claims is a hard-and-fast rule: “If you’re outside the white line, you can’t pass,” he declared.
The two teams’ tension has mounted for several weeks, and yesterday, at the beginning of the weekend, McLaren had voiced a concern regarding a possible device on Red Bull, which supposedly can change the front bib of the car under parc fermé conditions. For his response, Verstappen referred to being penalized himself several times during the season because of similar offenses.
This was again a subject of debate – whether this was the interpretation of the rules. McLaren considered that Verstappen was braking too late on the approach to that corner, knowing he was going to run deep and push Norris off as well as preventing him from making a proper overtake.
Stella said: “The defending car just goes straight at the apex, we have checked the video several times. It just goes straight and off the circuit as much as Lando, there is no chance for Lando to complete the maneuver.”
He described the penalty, which cost him five points in the championship standings, as a “momentum killer.” The debate over the incident and how to interpret the regulations will likely carry over into the next round in Mexico.
The Norris-Verstappen controversy was the second of a spate of incidents that emerged recently in the races. Mercedes man George Russell was also punished for sending Valtteri Bottas out onto the grass, and Yuki Tsunoda was punished in much the same way for pushing Alex Albon off, but Verstappen escaped a penalty for forcing Norris wide at the start of the race.
As former Mercedes team principal Wolff said, “He wasn’t given a penalty, and at the end Lando received a penalty for being run wide and overtaking on the outside. Maybe a bit one-sided penalty decision.”
The fight between Verstappen and Norris will add drama in the championship race as it heats up during the remaining races of the season.
