Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri should not have “bitten” on Max Verstappen’s claim that he would have won the Japanese Grand Prix with ease in the McLaren.

That is the belief of Sky F1 pundit Martin Brundle, who says Verstappen landed a “direct hit” by triggering a “defensive” response from the McLaren drivers.

Lando Norris ‘bite’ catches Martin Brundle’s eye after Max Verstappen comment

Verstappen claimed his first victory of the F1 2025 season in Japan last weekend after a stunning pole position saw him start ahead of the dominant McLarens of Norris and Piastri.

Speaking after the race, Verstappen claimed that “you wouldn’t see me anymore” if he had the dominant MCL39 car at his disposal instead of the Red Bull, which has struggled for pace at the start of the new season.

Norris responded to Verstappen’s suggestion by sending a light-hearted invitation to the reigning four-time World Champion to test the McLaren, remarking that he would “be excited to see the disappointment on his face when he gets out.”

The F1 2025 context behind McLaren’s cautious strategy at Suzuka

👉 Japanese GP conclusions: Verstappen’s Alonso-esque rampage, McLaren tactics, the real Doohan mistake

👉 McLaren’s strategy indecision is the biggest threat to their title chances

Piastri, meanwhile, told media including PlanetF1.com ahead of this weekend’s Bahrain Grand Prix that the race in Japan “would have looked quite different” had Verstappen started behind the McLarens.

Appearing on Sky F1’s coverage of the first practice session in Bahrain, Brundle claimed Verstappen risked demotivating his Red Bull team by suggesting he would have dominated in the McLaren.

And he reckons both Norris and Piastri should have ignored Verstappen’s remarks, with their response giving the Red Bull driver a psychological victory.

Asked whether Red Bull or the McLaren drivers were the target of Verstappen’s comments, Brundle said: “Both. It’s twofold.

“It was to give his team a hurry up and to poke the two McLaren drivers. Direct hit, because they both went on the defensive.

“Risky strategy because what Max is saying there to the 1,500 people back at base who’ve just given him a race-winning car: ‘Your car’s not very good.’

“That can demotivate them.

“But then both McLaren drivers, certainly Lando, said a bit the same thing about his car: ‘Well, have a go in it. You’ll be disappointed Max.’

“They shouldn’t have bitten on that one, I don’t think. It’s quite clever psychology from Max.”

More on Lando Norris and McLaren

👉 Lando Norris news

👉 McLaren news

McLaren were criticised in some quarters for failing to put enough pressure on Verstappen in Japan, with Norris pitting on the same lap as the race leader rather than staying out to treat his tyres to cleaner air.

Later in the race, meanwhile, McLaren opted to keep Norris and Piastri in second and third despite the latter looking faster at that stage of the race.

With Norris and Piastri likely to be in direct competition for the F1 2025 title, Brundle believes McLaren are under pressure to avoid putting either driver at a “disadvantage.”

He said: “Completely different race here [in Bahrain], where you can build a tyre advantage by staying out longer and having fresher tyres at the end of the race.

“It was two against one at Suzuka and they may well have that again here with other teams as well.

“Should they have tried to destabilise Red Bull and done something a litter different? I think they probably should have, yes.

“The problem you’ve got there is they’ve got two drivers up for the World Championship.

“It’s a problem they’re going to have to manage all through this season and probably the next few seasons indeed.

“Do you want to disadvantage one of those?

“Because if you do that swap or bring Lando in early, put him in traffic, lose a little bit of time and then there’s a Safety Car, Lando is back in seventh and he’s not no longer leading the World Championship.

“It’s very easy to sit on the sofa going: ‘Do that, do this.’

“But you can look a bit foolish quite quickly.”

Read next: Max Verstappen responds to McLaren rear wing footage reposted by father Jos