Lando Norris tells Max Verstappen ‘stop complaining or quit F1’ as pair lock horns | F1 | Sport
Verstappen is among the drivers taking part in the sport’s ongoing pre-season testing in Bahrain, with the Dutchman having set some solid times throughout the week. But eyebrows were raised on Thursday when Verstappen went on a full-scale attack, criticising the new regulations, while hinting they are anti-F1.
Verstappen isn’t the only driver to have spoken out against the changes, but when the comments were relayed to world champion Norris, the Englishman had a very different response. Speaking at the testing event in the Middle East, Norris remarked: “A lot of fun, I really enjoyed it. Formula One changes all the time. Sometimes it’s a bit better to drive, sometimes it’s not as good to drive.
“We get paid a stupid amount of money to drive, so you can’t really complain in the end of the day. Any driver can go and find something else to do. It’s not like he has to be here, or any driver has to be here.
“It’s a challenge, but it’s a good, fun challenge for the engineers, for the drivers. It’s different. You have to drive it in a different way and understand things differently and manage things differently. But I still get to drive cars and travel the world and have a lot of fun. So, nothing to complain about.”
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It makes things interesting heading into the new season, given Norris and Verstappen will again expect to battle it out for the world championship crown later this year. On the new regulations, Verstappen said: “The right word is management. But on the other hand, I also know how much work has been going on in the background. Also from the engine side, for the guys. So it’s not always the nicest thing to say.
“But I also want to be realistic. As a driver, the feeling is not very Formula 1-like. It feels a bit more like Formula E on steroids. As a pure driver, I enjoy driving flat out. And at the moment, you cannot drive like that. There’s a lot going on.”
Before adding: “A lot of what you do as a driver, in terms of inputs, has a massive effect on the energy side of things. For me, that’s just not Formula 1. Maybe it’s better to drive Formula E, right? Because that’s all about energy efficiency and management. That’s what they stand for. Driving-wise, it’s not so fun.”
Testing is set to continue before the first race of the season takes place in Melbourne, Australia next month.
