Lando Norris didn’t hold back in his assessment of Max Verstappen’s aggressive driving during the Miami Grand Prix, accusing the Red Bull driver of “not racing very smart” after a first-lap clash that compromised both drivers’ race.
The McLaren charger ultimately recovered to finish second, but the incident left Norris unhappy about what he perceived as needless aggression from the reigning world champion.
The pair tangled on the opening lap in a fierce wheel-to-wheel exchange that pushed Norris down to sixth, forcing him to mount a strong comeback drive.
Verstappen, meanwhile, struggled for race pace and was forced to cede the lead to future winner Oscar Piastri, ultimately finishing a distant 40 seconds behind the McLaren driver.
Norris was clear in the post-race FA press conference that he felt Verstappen had cost himself dearly with his overzealous defending.
“[Max was] fighting hard. It's up to him to do that,” Norris said.
“You know, he ruined his own race — he's not racing very smart. He probably could've finished third today and he didn't, because of that.
“So, yeah, he's fighting hard, as always expected. But that's the way it is.”
Despite both cars leaving the track during their on-track tussle that saw Norris temporarily gain the upper hand against Verstappen, the incident between the two was not deemed worthy of investigation by the stewards.
The McLaren driver gave back the position but eventually overtook Verstappen cleanly, continuing his charge back through the field and capping it with a late pursuit of Piastri for the win.
Though frustrated by the clash with Verstappen, Norris turned in one of his strongest performances of the season, reeling in his teammate Oscar Piastri during the final stint of the race.
At one point, Piastri held a commanding nine-second lead, but Norris managed to halve that margin before backing off in the final few laps.
“I gave it a good shot when I got into second place and there was a long way to go, I think still 25 or 30 laps at that point,” he recounted.
“I only probably stopped pushing really in the last four or five laps but the gap went from like almost 10 to to four or three almost, so I did all I could.
“And I tried the whole race until until the very end so I kept belief during the whole race, but Oscar's driving.
“He’s quick to catch but it always pretty much going to be impossible, but I gave it a good shot. I almost got there, just not enough laps.”
Piastri himself admitted after the race that his performance dipped in the closing stages, calling it “not the strongest second half of the race of my life.”
Even so, the Aussie held on for his third consecutive Grand Prix win, while Norris had to settle for second — though he now trails his teammate by just 16 points in the championship.
Despite the on-track drama, Norris leaves Miami with renewed confidence and form, but also with a pointed message for Verstappen: aggression without foresight can come at a cost.
Whether the Red Bull driver will take that on board remains to be seen as the championship battle heats up.
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