The Miami Grand Prix saw Lando Norris surge from a tough start to finish second, but the big talking point came from his early clash with Max Verstappen at Turn 2 — a moment Norris says was inevitable.
Starting second on the grid, just 0.065 seconds behind Verstappen, Norris was faced with a big decision: attack or hold back.
As the lights went out, Verstappen moved aggressively across the track, defending his position into Turn 1. A small lock-up gave Norris a chance to go side-by-side, but when they reached Turn 2, Verstappen’s inside line squeezed Norris wide.
“He pushed me wide!” Norris radioed in frustration as he slipped from second to sixth. Despite Norris’ complaint, the stewards reviewed the incident and decided there would be “no further investigation.”
Still, the McLaren team delivered an outstanding result. With Oscar Piastri claiming victory and Norris recovering to second, they secured a dominant 1-2 finish — a full 30 seconds ahead of the next-best team. Verstappen, meanwhile, ended up fourth.
The win marked Piastri’s fourth of the season, putting him 16 points ahead of Norris in the championship standings, with Verstappen another 16 points back.
Was Norris Too Aggressive?
Some pundits believe Norris should have been more patient at the start instead of risking an early fight with Verstappen. But Norris disagrees.
“There was a gap and I went for it,” he told Spain’s DAZN. “I had the space and the right to be there, but that gap closed quickly. I can’t expect anything else. But I can’t not go for that gap because if I don’t, someone else will.”
When racing Verstappen, Norris admits, the stakes are always high.
“It’s always tough battling Max. I never expect it to be easy. But with him it’s crash or nothing. It’s hard to attack someone like that.”
As for whether Verstappen should have been penalized, Norris shrugged: “It doesn’t matter whether I agree or not because it’s out of my control.”
Expert Opinions: Should Norris Have Waited?
Former Dutch racer Jeroen Bleekemolen suggested that Norris might have been better off backing off early.
“Maybe he should have given up his action in Turn One earlier, because then he might have been second behind Verstappen. Then he could then start the attack. They (McLaren) were much faster,” Bleekemolen said on NOS’s Formula 1 podcast.
However, Bleekemolen rejected recent criticism of Norris, especially from 1980 F1 World Champion Alan Jones, who called the young Brit “weak.”
“Of course he is being treated harshly, but that is also a bit because of himself,” Bleekemolen added. “After all, he says that he sometimes has a hard time on the mental level. It’s just that everyone is watching it and if he hadn’t done anything, they would have said, ‘why isn’t he trying?’ The truth lies a bit in the middle there.”
