Following the acrimonious collision between Lando Norris and Max Verstappen at the Austrian Grand Prix, the pair met on-track twice at Silverstone, though without the same fireworks.
The clear championship leader and his closest challenger fought so bitterly over the lead in Austria that the lack of drama in their Silverstone scraps came as a surprise. But each time they met on the Hangar straight one driver was clearly quicker than the other, and the power of DRS ensured each pass was a straightforward slam-dunk rather than a prolonged fight.
But there is surely more to come. Red Bull and McLaren are so close in performance Verstappen and Norris have qualified in consecutive grid positions for each of the last four grands prix. Expect this battle to remain joined for the foreseeable future. This weekend’s race in Hungary, where passing is never easy, could provide another flashpoint.
Will Norris be better armed to take on his rival this time? One driver who is uniquely well-placed to pass judgement on them saw the events of Austria as a valuable learning experience for the McLaren driver.
Daniel Ricciardo was team mate to Norris for two seasons at McLaren and spent almost three years alongside Verstappen at Red Bull. He had his own run-in with Verstappen, notoriously, six years ago in Baku. That led to Ricciardo’s decision to leave them at the end of that season, though he returned to the Red Bull fold with its second team last year.
In his view, Verstappen is the same hard-as-nails racer he was when he arrived in F1 eight years ago, albeit now armed with the benefits of experience and maturity.
“When I say he’s unchanged, I think the way he goes racing, obviously he leaves it all out on the track and that’s also what a lot of fans have admired about him,” said Ricciardo. “But do I think he’s matured since the start of his career? Absolutely.”
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In Austria, after sparring over the lead for several laps, Verstappen and Norris finally collided. Norris accused his rival of repeatedly changing his line in braking zones, leaving the track and gaining an advantage and then finally causing the contact between the pair.
The stewards agreed on the final count, handing Verstappen a 10-second time penalty which…
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