After the Austrian Grand Prix, McLaren driver Lando Norris and his supporters returned home disappointed. On lap 63 of the race, the Briton made contact with Max Verstappen’s Red Bull Racing car, after which Norris retired. Since the incident, the two teams have been playing an old-fashioned game of ‘yes, no’. Not only can Verstappen and Norris not get along at the moment, McLaren team boss Andrea Stella also has few good words for Christian Horner.
The two drivers had already been involved in the battle for first place for some time before the incident. On the circuit with no less than three DRS zones and thanks to a set of new medium tyres, Norris managed to get side by side with Verstappen. Earlier attempts to overtake had already failed when the two eventually made contact on lap 63. The race came to an early end for Norris as a result. Since then, the McLaren team has maintained that Verstappen could have prevented the incident. Accusations against Norris will therefore not be tolerated.
Horner’s Integrity
Stella made his stance clear to SiriusXM after the race. The Italian said he believes the incident could have been avoided if Verstappen had been treated more harshly after his 2021 title fight against Lewis Hamilton. He also criticized Red Bull for not having adequately informed Verstappen during the race. “We reached a point during the race where there were maneuvers that needed to be addressed immediately so that both drivers knew they had to stay within the boundaries of the rules. Verstappen in particular should have been informed that some of the moves in the braking zones were not allowed,” the team boss said.
For his part, Red Bull team boss Horner has a very different take on the incident. Horner shared that he believed Norris “wanted to cause something in Turn 3.” It was in that corner that the two drivers came into contact and Norris’ race went up in smoke. Stella completely resented Horner’s suggestion. “These kinds of statements are pretty irreparable and to some extent it also says something about the integrity of the person who says it,” the Italian snapped.
Giving someone else a chance
Stella is still somewhat able to look at the part his own team played in not being able to prevent the incident. ‘The fight itself was great, but the fact that we didn’t inform the drivers caused it to escalate,’ he says.
The team boss is not furious about the Austrian team and the reigning world champion, although he would like to see Verstappen give Norris a chance. ‘In general, we have so much respect for Max. What he achieves is unbelievable. He is a great driver. There is no reason to defend like that. Sometimes you just have to accept that the car behind needs to be given a chance’, said Stella.
The battle between Red Bull and McLaren has heated up since the Miami Grand Prix. In Florida, McLaren introduced its first package of updates on Norris’ car. Later, Piastri’s car was also fully equipped with this. Norris won the race in Miami and has since been increasingly found near Verstappen on the track. Stella is looking forward to the continuation of the duel between the two teams.
If the incident in Austria had not happened, it would have been a breathtaking race, thinks the McLaren team boss. ‘It would have been an incredible spectacle. We missed that now, but hopefully we can have that again in the future, with rules being enforced and both drivers fighting within the rules.’
