Verstappen shuts down Norris with ‘slag-off’ warning

Max Verstappen has countered Lando Norris rubbishing his claim he would have won the F1 drivers’ title earlier in a McLaren.

The Briton suggested the newly-crowned four-time champion should take up comedy before dismissing the idea altogether.

The Red Bull driver retorted that he knows “perfectly well what I can and cannot do” after the McLaren driver’s comments were put to him.

Verstappen’s initial remarks were made in the wake of securing the drivers’ crown with two races to spare, at last weekend’s Las Vegas Grand Prix.

It has been a challenging season for the Dutchman and Red Bull, with the RB20 proving to be a pale imitation of its predecessors and rival F1 teams significantly reducing the performance delta to the reigning constructors’ champions, to the extent to which that title will likely fall to either McLaren or Ferrari.

The shift happened early in the year – at the sixth round, in Miami – but Verstappen was nevertheless able to win seven of the opening 10 grand prix.

However, from that point on, he only triumphed in one of the following 12 events, in fortuitous circumstances and torrid conditions at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.

It was a result that effectively sealed the title for him, pushing his advantage to 62 points with a maximum of 86 up for grabs ahead of the trip to Nevada.

McLaren was not alone in the 27-year-old’s comments upon wrapping up the title in Sin City, with Verstappen also stating it would have been a similar situation if he were racing for Ferrari.

That prompted Charles Leclerc to contest Verstappen’s remarks himself, suggesting it was a “stretch” to make such outlandish claims.

Verstappen was later told that Norris disagreed with his assertion, and when asked if he was surprised by that response, the 62-time grand prix winner told media including RacingNews365: “No, but no-one needs to respond. I know perfectly well what I can and cannot do.”

When pressed on whether Norris has lost the championship graciously, Verstappen sidestepped the question.

“We don’t need to talk about that,” he quipped back. “We don’t need to spend time on trying to slag people off or whatever.

“The championship is done. We try again next year.”