Lando Norris claims he ‘raced like a muppet’ after failing against Max Verstappen at US GP

Max Verstappen managed to get the better of Lando Norris at COTA with a hard-fought third place finish.


Lando Norris claims he ‘raced like a muppet’ after failing against Max Verstappen at US GP

Lando Norris and Max Verstappen (via IMAGO)

Lando Norris and Max Verstappen were involved in a brutal fight at the 2024 US GP. The duo got their elbows out in the latter part of the 56-lap race and ultimately, at the end of it all, Verstappen managed to come out trumps with a P3 finish.

Following the fierce fiasco, Lando Norris has admitted that he didn’t do a potent job in racing against Max Verstappen. On lap 52, Norris overtook Verstappen by going off the track and did not give the position back.

YouTube video

For this reason, he was smacked with a five-second penalty that cost him the third-place finish in COTA.

FS Video

I raced like a muppet and defended poorly.

Lando Norris via GPBlog

Looking at the post-race reaction of the 24-year-old, it is quite clear that he is extremely disappointed with his outing. Firstly, he has referenced his lap 1 tussle against Verstappen in which, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc got the better of both of them. Secondly, he has acknowledged his whole outing and asserted he could have done a way better job than what he actually managed.

McLaren feels Lando Norris ‘learned’ a lesson from COTA fight against Max Verstappen

Lando Norris has been extremely critical of his performances during the ongoing season. He has often blamed himself for his shortcomings and the same has been the case after last week’s US GP.

Lando Norris (via imago)
Lando Norris (via imago)

While the Brit has deemed himself a muppet, McLaren boss Andrea Stella feels the former learned a valuable lesson at COTA.

I would not say that Lando needs to be more aggressive. I think anytime you have this kind of duels on track, you learn a little bit.

Andrea Stella via GPBlog

The 2024 F1 season has only five races remaining on the calendar. Norris is currently 57 points adrift of the three-time world champion in the driver’s standings. Considering this, the latter will be required to bring his absolute A-game from Mexico onwards.

Otherwise, the McLaren star will miss out on the golden chance of amassing his maiden world championship at the pinnacle of motor racing. All eyes will be on Norris at the famous Mexican Grand Prix.