Lando Norris hits out at ‘idiot’ Max Verstappen after Italian Grand Prix drama

Lando Norris branded Max Verstappen an ‘idiot’ after the pair nearly came to blows at the Formula 1 Italian Grand Prix on Sunday.

Verstappen won from pole at Monza, his first victory since May, with Norris finishing second and McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri third.

While not the result he would have wanted, the British driver did at least claw back a few points in the title race against Piastri, with the gap down to 31 points with eight races remaining.

There was drama at lights out when Verstappen moved over to defend from Norris, forcing him onto the grass at high-speed when the track narrowed.

Norris managed to keep going and dived up the inside of the Red Bull down at the first corner, but Verstappen failed to make the turn, cutting across the chicane and maintaining the lead of the race.

Stewards investigated the incident but Red Bull quickly instructed the Dutchman to let Norris overtake him as he had gained an unfair advantage, and no further action was taken.

Norris was left fuming in the initial aftermath, saying on the team radio: ‘Yeah, what the f***, what is this idiot doing?

‘Come on, he’s put me on the grass and then he’s just cut the corner.’

It mattered little in the end, as Verstappen passed Norris a few laps later and then controlled the race to claim his third win of the season and Red Bull’s first since Christian Horner’s departure.

The pair were in good spirits as they debriefed in the cool down room and celebrated on the podium, with Verstappen delighted to be back on the top step.

‘It was a great day for us. Lap 1 was a bit unlucky but after that we were flying,’ the four-time world champion said.

‘The car was really enjoyable. I could manage the pace quite well throughout that first stint and we pitted at the right time. With the hard tyres at the end, you can push a bit more, it’s more resilient.

‘Fantastic execution by everyone by the whole team. The whole weekend, we were on it. It’s super enjoyable to win here.’

There was a little tension however between Piastri and Norris after the Australian was asked to give up second-place for his teammate amid their tight title fight.

Norris had led Piastri comfortably throughout the whole race but a slow pitstop cost him the position in the dying laps, with McLaren ordering the swap, feeling it was unfair for the overtake to happen because of their mistake.

The championship leader was unimpressed on the team radio, saying: ‘We said that a slow pit stop was part of racing, so I don’t really get what changed here. But I’ll do it.’

More to follow…

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