Lando Norris shares cheeky reference to the Max Verstappen-George Russell feud in his post about the driver's dinner
McLaren driver Lando Norris shared a cheeky reference to Max Verstappen and George Russell's feud while posting about the driver's dinner ahead of the 2024 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The interest in the season-finale at the Yas Marina Circuit reached a boiling point on Thursday during the media day when both Verstappen and Russell were involved in a verbal spat.
The duo had been displeased with each other since the one-place penalty for the Red Bull driver for the main race in Qatar, which demoted him to P2 while the Brit inherited the pole position.
The four-time F1 world champion had publicly expressed his displeasure regarding the Mercedes driver's behavior in the stewards' room and claimed that he "lost all respect" for the three-time race winner. George Russell retaliated in Abu Dhabi and took several jibes in a press conference in the Mercedes hospitality zone.
While referencing their spat, Lando Norris on his social media platform Instagram posted about the driver's dinner in Abu Dhabi ahead of the weekend. The 25-year-old could not help but take a cheeky reference at the simmering tension between Max Verstappen and George Russell and wrote:
"2024 dinner! and yes, the two your thinking about were sat as far away from each other as possible."
Lando Norris gives his take on the Max Verstappen-George Russell spat
McLaren driver Lando Norris stated that he was "enjoying" the argument between Max Verstappen and George Russell as he believed that everyone raced differently in the sport.
Speaking with Motorsportweek, the three-time race winner reflected:
“I don’t know the details, actually I do know a lot of the details of what was said and what happened. For George, that was by saying probably what he said and doing what he said. At times, you know, I think between drivers you have that amount of respect when something happens. You’re like, that’s racing or that’s just what happens sometimes and you don’t want either of them to get a penalty because it’s racing.
“It’s just a situation where no one should really get a penalty. Mercedes are not fighting for a championship or something like that. They’re kind of clinging on to a bit more than what Max is. So they’re going to do at what at all costs it takes to try and get a pole or try and get a win.
He concluded his opinion by mentioning:
“So maybe he’s paid the price a little bit of that from an amount of respect for Max. Everyone does things their own way. Some fight harder for things, some fight less. But I enjoy watching them argue like they do.”
Lando Norris shares a friendly equation with both Max Verstappen and George Russell given he has been racing with the pair since the junior categories.