Verstappen had his chances of victory ruined when he collided with Norris.
Max Verstappen refuted Lando Norris’ claim that he was maneuvering while braking before the incident that ruined both drivers’ races at the Austrian Formula 1 Grand Prix.
Verstappen seemed to be on his way to securing his sixth victory at the Red Bull Ring, as he built a significant eight-second advantage over Norris in the early stages.
However, the Dutchman started to struggle with his tires towards the end of his second stint, and a 6.5-second pit stop by Red Bull put McLaren right on his tail.
Norris attempted to overtake the Red Bull at Turns 3 and 4 on multiple occasions, but was unable to complete the maneuver and complained that Verstappen was blocking his attempts.
The collision between the race leaders occurred on lap 64, when Verstappen squeezed Norris to the outside, resulting in an inevitable contact that caused punctures to both drivers’ tires.
Norris was furious with his rival’s actions and argued that his driving exceeded acceptable limits, but Verstappen firmly believes he did nothing wrong while driving.
“For me, it wasn’t a case of changing direction during braking, because every time I made a move, I had already finished braking. Of course, it may look like that from the outside,” Verstappen stated.
“But I believe I know very well what to do in this kind of situation, and some of those moves were really late dives.
“So it’s just a matter of going on the inside and hoping the other person backs off, which is not always the way to race. I think the nature of this corner also contributes to that.
“I’ve been in the opposite position where you go up, and it’s just the way of the curve. The incident we had together was something I didn’t anticipate because I saw it coming, defended myself a little inside, and then during braking, our rear tires touched, resulting in punctures for both, which is certainly not something you want to happen.”
Verstappen received a 10-second time penalty from the stewards, who deemed him responsible for the incident. The Dutch driver expressed his disagreement with the decision, stating that he did not believe his actions were overly aggressive. However, he expressed concern about Norris’ risky maneuvers at Turn 3, which almost resulted in a collision earlier in the race. Verstappen acknowledged that his own maneuver may not have been the best, but felt that Norris’ late braking and attempt to squeeze inside were also at fault. Despite the incident, Verstappen does not believe it will negatively affect his friendship with Norris, as they are all professional drivers aiming to avoid collisions with each other. Despite the penalty and the extra pit stop, Verstappen still managed to finish in fifth place and increase his lead in the championship standings. Both drivers were frustrated with the outcome of the incident.
