McLaren’s Lando Norris has issued a strong statement regarding his United States Grand Prix clash with Max Verstappen, claiming that “his only job was to beat me.” Norris hinted that this would be Verstappen’s approach for the remaining five Grands Prix of the 2024 season. In response, Norris plans to make slight changes to his approach in the championship battle with the Red Bull driver.
The incident occurred on Lap 52 at Turn 12, where Norris attempted an outside overtake on Verstappen through a left-hander. Verstappen reportedly forced Norris beyond track limits and also crossed the white lines himself. Norris ultimately passed Verstappen off-track but did not give back the position. Although Norris initially finished in third place, ahead of the Red Bull driver, the stewards handed him a 5-second penalty for overtaking beyond track limits, dropping him to fourth.
This penalty was a setback for the 24-year-old driver in his championship pursuit against Verstappen, who extended his lead by 5 points over the weekend. Verstappen’s sprint victory also contributed to his 57-point advantage, a margin that would have been tighter without the penalty. While the USGP weekend saw Red Bull come alive after a long period of struggle due to the balance problem on the RB20 F1 car, Norris insists Verstappen’s only goal is to beat him. He told the media ahead of the Mexico City Grand Prix:
We saw Max didn’t care if he won or was second or third, his only job was to beat me and he did that – so he did a good job from that side.
“I had a lot of fun and I respected the battle that we had. He still ended up on top and I need to be beating him. So some little things I need to change but I don’t need to change my whole approach.
