Norris on Verstappen incident: 'It's racing, I think'

Lando Norris weighed in on his pit-exit incident with Max Verstappen, one which had a marked bearing on the results of the Japanese Grand Prix.

The McLaren driver was stuck behind the Honda-liveried Red Bull for much of the 53-lap event, with dirty air and overheating tyres making it difficult to overtake around the Suzuka International Racing Course.

An opportunity arose when the Championship rivals came into the pits at the same time at the end of lap 21. Norris was stationary for a second less than Verstappen, and the pair were side-by-side on pit exit.

One of the drivers had to yield, and in the end it was Norris who was pushed onto the damp grass by Verstappen. The British driver almost lost control of his MCL39; he kept it together but lost any time that he had managed to gain in the pitlane.

'The Last Guy I Expect To Give Me Any Space'

For the remainder of the Grand Prix, Norris was around two seconds adrift of Verstappen, failing to gain the benefit of DRS behind the white Red Bull. The race came to a close with Verstappen claiming his first victory of 2025, Norris in P2 and the latter's teammate Oscar Piastri finishing in third.

Norris believes he could have won the race if he had qualified ahead of Verstappen on the Saturday.

He said: "I guess I just lost out yesterday. Max drove a good race today, no mistakes. The pace was too similar today to do anything more. Long race, a lot of pushing. 

"It was a flat out race from start to finish, so tough, but just not enough today, nothing special that we had that we could get Max on. They were quick and no mistakes, so he deserved it," added the McLaren driver.

• Read Also: Stunning Verstappen snatches Japanese GP pole from Norris

On the incident with Verstappen, Norris clarified that there was no bad blood with the Dutchman, despite tensions running high during the race.

"It’s racing, I think. He was still ahead, it kind of squeezes into one, and Max is the last guy I expect to give me any space… in a good way, in a racing way.

"So, nothing more than that."

Although Norris didn't manage to secure the race victory, he was still happy with the outcome of the weekend: "I think it’s still been a very good weekend. Obviously, we didn’t get the positions that we wanted.

"We’re fighting for a win every weekend, but they deserved it. Both Red Bull and Max deserved it this weekend. They’re quick, they’ve been catching up, they’ve obviously made some improvements, and as a team, we didn’t have enough this weekend.

"So we’re going to have to work harder for the next one."

There is just one point between Norris and Verstappen in the Drivers' Championship, The former ahead on 62 points to the latter's 61.

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