‘It’s my first time being in this situation’ – Norris reflects on how friendship with Verstappen has been affected by title fight

Lando Norris has given his take on whether his friendship with Max Verstappen off the track has been affected by their championship fight on it, with the Briton admitting that he’s “split” over whether the two things can be kept separate.

Norris and Verstappen had long been known to share a good relationship in the past, but questions have arisen over whether this will continue to be the case given the close battles that the pair have been involved in during the 2024 season.

READ MORE: Stella identifies the missed points in 2024 that McLaren and Norris ‘regret’ amid Verstappen championship fight

During a chat with Will Buxton on F1 TV’s Pre-Race Show in Sao Paulo, Norris was quizzed on whether the person outside of the car could be separated from the racing driver inside it.

“I don’t know, I’m split,” the McLaren driver answered. “In some ways, you kind of think how someone can be personally and how you can get along with people can be so different to how you are on track.

“It’s such a different world there on the track to here doing this [in the paddock]. It’s my first time being in this situation, and time will tell how that changes. But for now I still respect Max, I think he respects me, but maybe ask me again at the end of the year!”

Verstappen came under scrutiny for some of his on-track manoeuvres whilst going wheel-to-wheel with Norris during the Mexican Grand Prix, with the Dutchman receiving two 10-second time penalties for his moves on his title rival.

READ MORE: Norris rues ‘unlucky’ pit stop timing in Sao Paulo as he vows team will ‘keep our heads down’ despite title setback

When it was put to Norris that Verstappen had not used such tactics since his fierce championship battle with Lewis Hamilton in 2021, the Briton was asked if this reflected the level that he himself is performing at in his own fight with Verstappen.

“It’s a compliment, that’s for sure,” said Norris. “But he’s doing what he believes is best, which is fair dos. It might not always be the right thing, but we always do what we believe is right and we always do what we believe is the best at that time.

“He’s doing what he has to to try and keep me behind him in the championship because he’s under pressure, Red Bull’s under pressure, they’re not delivering.

READ MORE: What Verstappen needs to do to take his fourth title in Las Vegas after his epic Sao Paulo Grand Prix win

“We as a team have overtaken them, Ferrari have overtaken them. They’re doing their best, we’re doing our best, and the more pressure we can put them under the more of these kinds of mistakes they’ll probably do.”

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