‘Got what he had coming to him’ - Does Max Verstappen need to change?

Has the time come for Max Verstappen 🅷to change his aggressive approach to racing in F1🍸?

Max Verstappen
Max Verstappen

Not for the first time, 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Max Verstappen has found himself at the centre of controversy for clashing with an F1 title rival.

The championship battle reached boiling point at the Mexico City Grand Prix as Verstappen and title rival 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Lando Norris came to blows for the second consecutive weekend. Unlike in Aus꧑tin, when Norris picked up a penalty, it was Verstappen's turn to be on the receiving end of punishment from F1’s stewards.

Verstappen was slapped with time penalties for two incidents with Norris on Lap 10 of Sunday’s race at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez as they sparred for position. Verstappen first pushed Norris༒ wide at Turn 4, before taking both his Red Bull an🐼d his rival’s McLaren off track a few corners later.

Norris criticised Verstappen’s moves as “dangerous” over team radio and went on to describe their latest fallout in Mexico City as being on “another level” to their previous clashes in the United S𝔉tates and Austria.

“I go into a race expec🧸ting a tough ba🌸ttle with Max,” Norris said. “It’s clear that it doesn’t matter if he wins or is second - his only job is to beat me in the race. And he’ll sacrifice himself to do that like he did today.

“But I want to have good battles with him. I want to have those tough battles like I’ve seen him have plenty of times, but fair ones. It’s alwa𒊎ys going to be on the line, it’s always going to be tough with Max. He’s never going to make anyone’s life easy, especially mine, at this point of the year.

“I think toda꧃y it was just not fair, clean racing. Therefore🎉, I think he got what he had coming to him.”

Lando Norris and Max Verstappen clash in Mexico City
Lando Norris and Max Verstappen clash in Mexico City

Ahead of the weekend, Verstappen quipped that he needs the rulebook in his car in order to stay on top of what heไ feels are “over-regulated” racing rules. Following a drivers’ meeting on Friday, it emerged that F1’s racing guidelines would be revised in the aftermath of the controversy at COTA.

In Sunday’s grand prix, Verstappen overstepped the mark and was subsequently penalised. There were shades of some of the contentious tactics the Dutchman resorted to during his blockbuster 2021 title fight with Mercedes’ 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Lewis Hamilton.

The second incident in particular, where ꧟Verstappen launched an unrealistic and almost desperate lunge to get ahead of Norris, drew criticism.

"The s𝕴econd one I was particularly upset about,” ex-F1 driver turned commentator 🦩Martin Brundle told Sky Sports F1. “This [Turn 4 incident] is all the squabble over apex and outside and inside, and he simply didn’t leave racing room.

“This [Turn🍬 7] is just a red mist moment, and actually a ridiculous moment. He’s just carried on the throttle and taken the pair of them off and I think he’s lucky he didn’t get a driv🐠e-through penalty or something like that actually.

“I’m so in awe of Max, and I hate it when he does that sort of thing, because he’s better than that. He’s too good to drive like that. I honestly think thaꦑt was a short-fuse red mist.”

Title rivals Max Verstappen and Lando Norris
Title rivals Max Verstappen and Lando Norris

Despite being hit with two separate 10-seco🧸nd time penalties for his driving, it doesn’t sound likely that Verstappen will change his famously-aggressive approach to wheel-to-wheel racing any time soon.

“I just drive how I think I have to drive,” Verstappen said. “Last week it was all right, this week [it is a] 20 secജonds penalty.”

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner said: “Max will always drive aggressively to what he p💧erceives as the regulations.  When you step over that mark, then of course you’ll get a penalty. I just fear that we’re perhaps overcompli𓆉cating it.”

Horner, who presented telemetry data to media including in his post-race ꦜdebrief to defend his driver, added: "It's frustrating in that you don't want to have to consult a rule book on every single overtake, or defence.

"All of these guys have grown up doing a lot of racing, and understand the principles of that. It's just importa﷽nt that𒉰 we don’t over-regulate into a point where you encourage a behaviour that is not within the guidelines and principles of motor racing.”

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff disagreed wi🔜th his Red Bull counterpart. He believes the 🦄severity of the penalties handed out to Verstappen will set a precedent and “change the way everybody races” in the future.

"A driver will always push to the limit and when the ruᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚles - the execution of the rules or interpretation of the rules - allow a certain way of racing then a driver like Max is always g🔥oing to exploit it," Wolff said.

"And I think now there has been a new interpretation, execution of those📖 regulations. I think it will change the way everybody races in the future. You won't see that any more."

Read More