Lando Norris says he holds no issues with Max Verstappen’s aggressive racing tactics, despite recent penalties handed to the Red Bull driver.
Though the McLaren driver acknowledged the reigning World Champion has “made my life very, very tough at times”, it is Verstappen’s right to do so in defence.
Verstappen has become known for his aggressive approach while racing, with he and Norris having battled at the start of the Mexico City Grand Prix.
The Red Bull driver was punished for forcing Norris off track on the first lap, and was most recently handed three penalty points in Barcelona for dangerous driving against George Russell in the closing stages last time out.
Norris quipped in that moment that he had seen that kind of racing in the Mario Kart video game series while in the cooldown room in Spain, but joked when asked about that: “I don’t remember saying it.”
On how the two go racing against each other, however, the Briton was of the belief their on-track action is fair game.
“I don’t think he’s done anything untoward towards me,” Norris said in an interview with BBC Sport.
“He’s raced against me very, very toughly, as he has the right to do. He’s made my life very, very tough at times. And he has the right to do that.
“I’ve said it many times, I have a lot of respect for Max. The driver he is, the person he is, what he stands for all of the time – and what he’s achieved, his four World Championships. That’s four more than me, and he’s had a lot more race wins than me.
“I admire those stats, those performances. But at the same time, everyone does what they believe is best. Everyone does what they believe is right. And they race for themselves.
“Some may be more aggressive than others. But everyone has flaws. I have them. Maybe he has them.
“I race in the aggressive way I believe is correct, and he does the same. The stewards are the ones who decide what is right and wrong.”
The subject of Verstappen’s philosophy of going racing was put to Norris, with the Red Bull driver having explained in a separate 2024 interview that: “When I race with someone, he will not be able to overtake me around the outside.”
That approach has led to criticism over time, but the McLaren driver explained that, even going back to his racing beginnings, that he would never anticipate a simple overtake around the outside of another driver.
“When you’re racing for wins, championships, against the best in the world, you can never expect things to be easy,” he said.
“You learn in go-karting that you can’t at all easily overtake around the outside. That is like a rule number one.
“But it can be done, and it will be done. But the number one goal for us is always to finish. Sometimes, when you try too hard, things can go wrong. You might end up not finishing the race, even though you might be in the right. So sometimes you’ve got to take the safer approach.”
