Max Verstappen has disclosed that he and Lando Norris agreed upon “99%” of things when discussing their controversial clash in the Formula 1 Austrian Grand Prix.
Verstappen was under intense pressure from Norris during the closing stages at the Red Bull Ring when he collided with his rival at Turn 3 with seven laps remaining.
The Dutchman would be penalised over the incident that handed both drivers punctures which ruined their win chances and prompted a heated response from Norris.
Norris slammed Verstappen’s aggressive racing approach in their duel and claimed he would “lose respect” towards the Red Bull driver should he not shoulder blame.
However, the Briton has since retracted those comments one week on at the British Grand Prix and proclaimed he was wrong to demand that Verstappen apologised.
Verstappen has confirmed that the pair have cleared the air over the incident and stressed that his sole concern was patching up his long-time friendship with Norris.
“For me, the only thing that I cared about is maintaining my relationship with Lando, because we are great friends,” Verstappen said.
“That for me, after the race, I said we have to just let things cool down because emotions run high.
“We immediately spoke on Monday, and I think we came to the conclusion that we actually really enjoyed our battle.
“We looked at the incident, it was such a silly little touch that of course had great consequences for both of us, and a bit more for Lando with how the puncture then evolved.
“But we like to race hard. We’ve done this for many years, not only in Formula 1, even in online racing where we’ve had a lot of fun together.
“And these things, they have to carry on because that’s what we like to do, and I think it’s great for Formula 1 as well.”
When Norris’ view was put to him post-race in Spielberg, Verstappen stated that he would seek to have a conversation with Norris once the adrenaline had dissipated.
“I said, ‘let’s calm and let things cool off a bit, look at the footage’,” he recalled. “That’s what I did with Lando.
“That’s the only one that I care about, because whatever anyway else said, that’s not for me. Everyone can have an opinion.
“I only look at the relationship of things, and my relationship with Lando of course in that case.”
Expanding more on the talk he held with Norris, Verstappen disclosed that the two were almost in complete agreement over what occurred once the dust had settled.
“We agreed with 99% of everything,” Verstappen added. “That’s a lot I think already.
“And naturally I said to Lando, when you go for moves up the inside, outside, you can trust me that I’m not there to crash you out of the way.
“The same the other way around, because we spoke about that as well.
“Naturally there’s always a human reaction when someone dives up the inside or outside, that you have a bit of a reaction to it.
“But I felt everything that I did was nothing massively over the top. Of course, like how you design the car, you try to go to the edge of the rules.
“Maybe you find some grey areas here and there. And that’s the same how you race. Otherwise, you will never be a top driver and you will never succeed in life anyway.”
Verstappen suggested that he didn’t take Norris’ words in the heat of the moment at face value and is convinced their relationship can survive more contests on track.
“I think it also depends on the personalities,” Verstappen said in relation to past friendships turning sour with increased competition.
“I know of course Lando, he’s a great guy, he’s a really nice person who loves Formula 1, of course he loves racing.
“He’s just very passionate about it, naturally of course after the race, you also have to realize, he’s fighting for his second potential win. I’m fighting for my 62nd win.
“Naturally your emotions are a little bit different. I know that from myself, when I was fighting for these first wins in F1.
“But that’s fine, that’s why I also tell him just let it cool off a bit and we’ll talk tomorrow.”
Asked whether there would now be a change in approach come their next on-track duel, Verstappen responded: “We go at it flat out! That’s what we agreed to.
“Because that’s what we like to do and that’s what’s good for Formula 1 as well.”
