Lando Norris and Max Verstappen in Japan — Photo: © IMAGO

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Norris mocks Verstappen after 10-second penalty dispute

Lando Norris and Max Verstappen were involved in a championship battle in 2024, but will it continue this season?

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Monday 2 June 2025 13:57

Lando Norris cheekily took aim at his former championship rival, Max Verstappen, after the Dutchman was slammed with a 10-second penalty at the Spanish Grand Prix.

Verstappen appeared to intentionally crash into Mercedes' George Russell, causing race stewards to hand him the penalty which demoted him from fifth down to 10th in the immediate aftermath of the race, a verdict which has been heavily disputed among the paddock.

F1 HEADLINES: FIA issue late penalty verdict as Max Verstappen disqualification demanded at Spanish Grand Prix

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The Dutchman faced criticism from Russell in the media pen after the race, with the Brit warning Verstappen to think about the influence he has on kids watching the sport, but Verstappen said in a fiery post-race interview that it 'doesn't matter' whether his crash was intentional or not.

Norris, who was involved in many on-track scraps with Verstappen during the pair's 2024 championship battle, then cheekily mocked Verstappen's move after the race in the cooldown room having finishing second in Barcelona.

"I’ve done that before, in Mario Kart," Norris said, having just watched Verstappen’s crash with Russell on the big screen alongside fellow podium sitters Oscar Piastri and Charles Leclerc.

When later asked by Sky Sports F1 about his Mario Kart comparison, Norris said: "They heard that? Right…no comment."

Norris stirs the pot over Verstappen-Russell rivalry

When Russell walked past Norris in the media pen prior to his Sky F1 interview, the McLaren driver also joked to Russell: "I can't believe you turned on him like that," clearly trying to make light of what was a pretty serious incident for both Russell and Verstappen.

However, the Mercedes star was in no mood for joking around, with the British driver giving an honest verdict in his post-race interview. Russell stated that Verstappen is an 'incredible' driver but lets himself down with moves like the one seen at the Spanish GP.

It carried on what has been a rather tumultuous time for the relationship of Verstappen and Russell after the Qatar GP weekend late last season, when Russell labelled Verstappen a 'bully', and accused him of allegedly threatening to crash the Brit into the wall, comments which Verstappen denied.

In this instance though, Verstappen has hampered himself more than Norris or Russell, missing out on a chance at challenging for another podium, instead finishing 10th, meaning he is now 49 points behind Piastri in the drivers' championship standings.