F1 star BOOED by fans after controversial Italian GP incident

norris, verstappen, piastri — Photo: © IMAGO

Italian Grand Prix

F1 star BOOED by fans after controversial incident

The tifosi did not handle Ferrari's podium absence well

Kerry Violet F1 News Editor

F1 editor and journalist covering motorsport since 2024.

Monday 8 September 2025 09:43

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The passionate tifosi demonstrated that they were capable of showing more than admiration at Sunday's Italian Grand Prix, as one F1 star was booed on the Monza podium.

The 16th round of the championship saw four-time title holder Max Verstappen return to the top once again, beating both McLaren drivers to P1.

Red Bull's star driver demonstrated his pedigree once again by crossing the line almost 20 seconds before his nearest challenger Lando Norris, with his McLaren team-mate and title rival Oscar Piastri not far behind.

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To the disappointment of the tifosi, neither Charles Leclerc or Lewis Hamilton were able to represent Ferrari on the most iconic podium on the F1 calendar, with the Scuderia's driver duo finishing P4 and P6 respectively.

The passionate fans surprisingly showed plenty of support for Verstappen as if the reigning champion was one of their own, but McLaren driver Norris was not met with a similar response upon entering the Italian GP podium.

Norris faced with shocking Monza response

The British racer was booed significantly having finished the race ahead of Piastri after McLaren once again marred the end of a grand prix by issuing team orders.

Norris endured a painfully slow pit stop that lasted 5.9 seconds having pitted to hopefully hand Piastri an advantage over Leclerc, but following the mistake in the pits, the Aussie racer was ordered to hand the position back to his team-mate after undercutting him.

This move led many to boo Norris on the podium but seemingly neither Verstappen nor Piastri were met with such a drastic reaction, with one fan revealing on social media: "I’m at Monza. They booed lando. The biggest cheers of the day were Lewis overtakes and lando’s slow pit."

One fan appeared amused by the booing, posting on 'X': "They booed norris and sang dudududu max verstappen I LOVE YOU TIFOSI."

Another took a more light-hearted approach, pointing out just how quickly the sport can change, saying: "I can still remember the boos he got in monza 2022 but look at what mclaren domination can do to a person."

However, quite a few F1 fans on 'X' were quick to state that Norris was not deserving of the response, with one writing: "MIND YOU LANDO DIDNT EVEN ASK FOR A SWAP!"

Such strong fan reactions have often led to controversy in the sport, with Verstappen and ex-Red Bull boss Christian Horner heavily booed just seven months ago at the F175 live event in London.

The sentiment that no one deserves to be booed in F1 was echoed by one fan on social media, who stated: "Fans, come on, let’s not boo drivers. Come. On, we can do better."

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