McLaren driver Lando Norris cheekily quipped that George Russell “turned in on” Max Verstappen in a conversation captured by television cameras at the Spanish Grand Prix.

Russell and Verstappen renewed their rivalry in the closing laps of the Spanish Grand Prix, where the pair made contact at Turn 1 shortly after the restart.

Lando Norris teases George Russell with light-hearted Max Verstappen quip

With Verstappen taking to the run-off area to maintain fourth position, the Red Bull driver was told by race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase to give the place to Russell to avoid a penalty.

Verstappen slowed on the approach to Turn 5 to allow Russell through before accelerating and making firm contact with the Mercedes.

He was handed a 10-second penalty moments after the chequered flag, dropping him from fifth to 10th in the final classification.

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Norris ultimately finished second in Barcelona as McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri collected his fifth victory of the F1 2025 season to extend his lead in the title race.

Piastri now has a 10-point advantage over Norris with nine races completed, with reigning champions McLaren holding a commanding 197-point advantage in the Constructors’ title race.

Russell is known to have an uneasy relationship with Russell, with the pair embroiled in a war of words in the closing weeks of the 2024 season.

Verstappen was enraged by what he perceived as Russell’s overdramatic attempts to ensure that the Red Bull man was given a grid penalty for an impeding incident during qualifying in Qatar last November.

At the season finale in Abu Dhabi a week later, Russell accused Verstappen of “going too far now” in an extensive critique of the Red Bull driver.

Norris and Russell, who are on good terms, crossed paths in the TV pen after the race with the McLaren driver unable to resist a joke with the Mercedes man.

Norris asked Russell: “Was that you and Max together? It was? I can’t believe you turned in on him like that. That was crazy!”

Norris, renowned for his quick wit, then turned to the reporter and added: “George should have got a penalty. It’s clear!”

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Norris’s quip to Russell came after he likened the clash between the Mercedes and Verstappen to a move from the video game Mario Kart in the post-race cooldown room.

The podium finishers – Piastri, Norris and Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc – were shown a brief highlights package of the race ahead of the podium ceremony, with the incident between Verstappen and Russell causing shock among the drivers.

Norris turned to Piastri and Leclerc and joked: “I’ve done that before. In Mario Kart.”

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