The 2024 Formula 1 title fight between Max Verstappen and Lando Norris was tense, but ended amicably. Norris spent months trying to wipe out Verstappen’s commanding lead at the top of the championship.
He never got closer than 44 points, with Verstappen employing some controversial wheel-to-wheel tactics to slow his charge. In Austria, he received a 10-second penalty for a late collision that ultimately took the McLaren driver out of the race.
The biggest flashpoint was Mexico, when Verstappen earned 20 seconds’ worth of penalties for two incidents with Norris in the space of four corners. The Briton called him ‘dangerous’ over the radio.
But every time there was a disagreement between the duo, they seemed to be back on good terms at the next race. Norris and Verstappen were friends coming into 2024 and they’ve managed to preserve their relationship.
There were some intra-team difficulties at McLaren, who initially hurt Norris’ title bid by maintaining parity between their two drivers in Hungary and Italy. But Oscar Piastri was eventually asked to move aside.
Piastri had to give up a Sprint win in Brazil, but Norris returned the favour in Qatar. Overall, then, it was a season short of acrimonious rivalries between the drivers.
F1 organisers want to see George Russell and Max Verstappen feud continue in 2025
At the final race of the season, one new rivalry exploded. George Russell and Max Verstappen were at odds over an incident at the Qatar Grand Prix.
Verstappen lost pole position for impeding Russell in qualifying. But the Dutchman was unhappy with his counterpart’s conduct in the stewards’ room.
When they left, Verstappen allegedly threatened to take Russell out of Sunday’s race. He instead passed him at the start without incident.
- READ MORE: What people ‘within the FIA’ are saying about Max Verstappen’s alleged crash threat to George Russell
After his victory, he attacked Russell in the press conference, stating that he’d ‘lost all respect’ for the Mercedes man. When he had the chance to respond at Yas Marina, Russell called Verstappen a bully who couldn’t cope with adversity.
According to a report from sport.de, F1 organisers ‘love these kinds of arguments’. There’s a feeling that the drivers have become ‘too friendly’ with one another, so it’s ‘refreshing when things really heat up’.
The sport likes to portray its drivers as gladiators. But to be worthy of that label, they must be ‘ready to swing the metaphorical sword’.
Liam Lawson and Max Verstappen on the same page over George Russell
Russell and Verstappen were pictured front and centre in a post on the GPDA Instagram account later in the Abu Dhabi weekend. President Alex Wurz may have wanted to portray an image of unity.
Speaking earlier in the off-season, Verstappen said his relationship with Russell was ‘okay’. They apparently had a brief conversation after the season finale.
But it remains to be seen whether that truce holds when they return to the track in Australia. Russell will hope he has the machinery to fight Verstappen on a more regular basis this year.
In a recent interview, new Red Bull signing Liam Lawson named Russell F1’s most serious driver. It’s fair to say Verstappen probably agrees with that verdict.
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