Lando Norris quipped that Max Verstappen’s late-race clash with George Russell in Formula 1’s Spanish Grand Prix reminded him of a move that would happen in Mario Kart.
The McLaren duo delivered a dominant 1-2 finish in Barcelona, with Oscar Piastri leading team-mate Norris to the checkered flag.
The pair managed to pull clear of Verstappen, who was hampered by collisions with Charles Leclerc and George Russell.
Frustrated after feeling Russell had barged him off track, Verstappen was instructed by his team to give the place back.
At Turn 5, the Dutchman briefly yielded before making contact with the British driver, resulting in a tense wheel-to-wheel moment.
The top three watched the replay of the incident in the cooldown room ahead of the podium.
Norris, cheekily, turned to his fellow drivers and quipped, “I’ve done that before… in Mario Kart”.
In the post-race Drivers’ Press Conference, the McLaren duo kept their comments on the Russell-Verstappen incident measured, despite Norris playfully trying to steer the conversation toward his teammate.
“I heard Oscar had some interesting opinions on it, so I’m going to pass straight over to him,” Norris told media including Motorsport Week.
Piastri admitted he was still trying to piece together exactly what happened.
“Ah, teammates with you, so fun; in all honesty, I don’t fully get the context of what happened,” Piastri replied.
“It looked a bit strange, like I thought he was giving the position back.”
He continued with some uncertainty about the clash.
“I mean, I don’t really get what happened there,” the 24-year-old explained.
“Like, I don’t know if it was a misunderstanding, whether he didn’t brake.
“I don’t really know; so I think I need a bit more context on what happened, but obviously it was not exactly a small touch, so I don’t have that much more, but it didn’t look great.”
Norris proceeded to try and throw his team-mate under the bus.
He added: “It’s not what he said earlier, but… yeah, again, I don’t know what happened
“I’ve not heard what Max has said and I’ve not heard what George has said, so I don’t think it’s something for me to comment on for now.”
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