Helmut Marko SLAMS F1 rival's Lando Norris mental health criticism

F1 News & Gossip

Marko SLAMS rival's Norris mental health criticism

Helmut Marko has been criticised for his comments regarding Lando Norris' mental health

Sheona Mountford F1 Journalist

Motorsport journalist working in F1 since 2024.

Thursday 24 October 2024 12:59

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Red Bull chief Helmut Marko has slammed Zak Brown for criticising his comments about Lando Norris’ Formula 1 mentality.

The McLaren star is locked in an intense title battle with Max Verstappen, who extended his lead from Norris in the standings to 57 points after the US Grand Prix.

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Norris once again fell prey to a poor start, after he allowed Verstappen and the two Ferraris to get ahead on the opening lap.

The Brit has previously been criticised for his starts in F1, and has frequently lost his P1 advantage during the opening stages of a race, including at Hungary, Monza and now Austin.

Lando Norris lost the lead on lap one of the US Grand Prix

Lando Norris has been criticised for his poor F1 starts

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Prior to the US GP, Norris came under fire from Marko, who asserted that Norris possessed 'mental weaknesses', and did not have the strength to fight for a championship with Verstappen.

Norris has been an advocate for mental health awareness after revealing his own struggles over the years, and McLaren CEO Zak Brown came to his driver's defence, claiming that the Red Bull chief had set the sport back by about 10-20 years with his comments.

Helmut Marko accuses Zak Brown of stirring up trouble

Now, however, Marko has retaliated in an interview with oe24, and has stated that Brown was simply 'stirring up trouble'.

"There was a fuss again just because I said that Norris is a bad starter," he said.

"But I never talked about mental health, only that Max is mentally stronger.

"Yes, but you can't twist the wording. That's a deliberate attempt to cause unrest. But we know the games played by Zak Brown, he deliberately stirs up trouble wherever he can."