There was solely ever going to be one storyline dominating Thursday on the British Grand Prix, and whereas it concerned two drivers, the remainder of the grid was all the time going to be dragged into the talk.
The battle between Max Verstappen and Lando Norris in Austria had led to some robust feedback from the McLaren aspect on Sunday night time, and a equally strong response — in addition to a protection — from Pink Bull.
Verstappen had largely stayed out of it on the time, however with simply three days between race occasions and an opportunity to learn the way the state of affairs had developed at Silverstone, there was loads of anticipation as media day acquired underway.
The 2 major protagonists shortly defused any animosity between them, with Verstappen making clear his solely concern had been for his relationship with Norris. The McLaren driver equally cooled his view, however did nonetheless recommend there are grey areas that want addressing in the case of the foundations of racing.
But that wasn’t a view as extensively shared by the remainder of the Formulation 1 grid as you may anticipate.
“It was aggressive racing, however I believe it was blown out of proportion for my part,” Alex Albon stated. “I believe it was questionable extra the primary transfer the place Max moved below braking the primary time. I don’t suppose he actually moved below braking within the one the place they made contact, it was simply heading extra in direction of a straight line, going extra in direction of the left. Positively extra you guys having fun with it. The truth of it was simply pure, laborious racing.
“They’re each going for the win so it’s going to be emotional. It’s within the second and they’re each combating for victory, so I believe it’s going to play an affect on their relationship to a point. Particularly as McLaren are going to be combating an increasing number of for victory.
“Might even get the identical motion this weekend and for the remainder of the yr. It’s simply pure when drivers preserve discovering themselves in the identical positions, in first and second, they’ll have extra possibilities to bang wheels.”
Albon says it’s additionally no shock that Norris was combating so laborious looking for a well beyond the Pink Bull, including: “Each driver would. I don’t know any driver who can be in with an opportunity to win a race and type of not put it on the road. We’re all very equally programmed.”
Albon’s sentiments had been shared by Daniel Ricciardo — who collided with Verstappen in Baku in 2018 once they had been teammates at Pink Bull — however felt the precise incidents in Austria weren’t worthy of great focus.
“I watched the incidents, or the battle, however I haven’t seen something of the aftermath when it comes to what’s been stated, what hasn’t been stated,” Ricciardo stated. “Just like the transferring below braking, I’ve an understanding of what I ought to do and shouldn’t do.
“You have a look at it, it’s laborious, however you’re additionally combating for a win, so that you’re not simply going to wave somebody by. I believe the contact, that may occur most likely 9 occasions out of 10 with no consequence. It was additionally, they’d been going it forwards and backwards, possibly the angle was a bit awkward, Lando ended race. I believe the result was most likely larger than what was truly occurring on observe.
“What I noticed at the least, nothing appeared excessive. Was it pushing the sting? Most likely. However was something harmful or reckless? At the least from what I’ve seen, no.”
Ricciardo says the best way Verstappen races has been the identical since he joined F1 and believes that analyzing the incident in gradual movement isn’t all the time truthful. Nonetheless, he agreed with Albon {that a} combat needs to be that intense if it’s for a victory.
“You realize that, it’s important to anticipate that. However… I don’t even need to highlight Max, I believe while you’re combating for a win, you combat for a win. Are you going to combat tougher than fifteenth place? Actually, sure. As a result of it’s simply how it’s. I believe it’s to be anticipated.
“I’m not saying whether or not every part was right and by the e book — possibly some issues had been pushing it, however once more, they’re going to speak about it, as a result of it’s for the win, and as I stated, they’ll most likely try to create some enemies out of two youngsters that get alongside.
“However I believe truthfully, it’s good that there’s a tough battle for the lead. Unlucky it ended that means for them, however that’s the way it goes.”
Kevin Magnussen has beforehand advocated for a extra American-style method to racing in F1 following his expertise of IndyCar and IMSA, wanting the drivers to have the ability to self-police extra understanding the results of contact.
“I believe it’s irritating that it’s all the time going forwards and backwards with guidelines,” Magnussen stated. “Perhaps they only need to make it extra free. On the finish of the day, he acquired a penalty, which I suppose was right by the foundations, however on the finish of the day, he acquired a pure penalty along with his puncture, so it didn’t repay for him to drive the best way he did in that second.
“I simply suppose there’s a pure kind of dynamic to racing. If you happen to let the drivers race free of charge, they’ll race laborious, however on the finish of the day you need to be ending races. You need to be taking good care of your automobile. That type of stops the drivers from doing too-crazy issues.”
Carlos Sainz identified how difficult it’s for drivers to recollect the entire ways in which a battle shall be judged based mostly on the place they’re positioned within the combat.
“For my part it’s clear which you can transfer to defend after which come again, however all the time go away one automobile’s width to the white line so the opposite automobile matches,” Sainz stated. “That’s the rule. I actually battle with the truth that we have to preserve including guidelines to the racing aspect of it.
“I believe there’s so many already; if you happen to learn the rulebook about what it’s important to do if you happen to overtake on the within, what you have to do if you happen to defend on the within, what you have to do if you happen to assault on the surface, what you have to do if you happen to defend from the surface… It’s all a special set of rules that’s already super-detailed and particular, which I battle to comply with precisely once I’m driving a automobile at 300kph. Since you can not suppose at that velocity about all these guidelines.
“Let’s say I don’t need any additional guidelines; the foundations are clear sufficient. And there was a choice taken on the stewards’ aspect already.”
Whereas it has been prompt that Norris needed to race in a forceful means in opposition to Verstappen due to how aggressive the Pink Bull driver could be, Charles Leclerc — who likened final weekend’s conflict to an identical one he had with Verstappen in 2022 — says he nonetheless fights in opposition to every of his rivals in the identical model.
“You get to know the drivers an increasing number of,” Leclerc stated. “And with Max, he’s most likely the driving force that I do know most on the grid as we now have pushed in opposition to one another from a really very long time — since again in 2010, I believe. You realize kind of how every driver goes to react or combat or defend or assault you.
“Nonetheless, I don’t combat them in numerous methods, any of them. I’ll all the time try to combat them in the identical means. It largely will depend on the state of affairs you might be in, and naturally in case you are combating for a P6 within the championship, and Max is 100 factors forward, you won’t combat him as laborious. However when a win is on the desk, I’ll all the time go flat out with whoever I’m combating with.”
Encouragingly, Verstappen stated he and Norris have agreed to combat simply as laborious with one another if confronted with an identical state of affairs in future. So whereas there won’t have been fireworks off-track because the British Grand Prix weekend acquired underway, there could possibly be some on it come Sunday.
