"Everybody thinks we are better mates than we are": Lando Norris comments on his friendship with Max Verstappen

McLaren driver Lando Norris mentioned that everyone believes he and Max Verstappen are better friends than they are off the track. The Brit was involved in a championship fight against the Red Bull driver for the majority of the season.

However, with a gap of 62 points between the two with just three races and one sprint remaining in the 2024 season, it looks improbable that the 25-year-old would deny the Dutch driver of the fourth consecutive championship.

Other than their on-track battles, Lando Norris and Max Verstappen's friendly dynamics off the track have also been tested given the latter's approach during their tussle throughout the season. Despite having a faster car for the majority of the year, the British driver was unable to take the fight to the 27-year-old consistently.

In his interview with F1TV, Lando Norris also admitted that he was "split" when separating the driver on and off the track. But as per Red Bull.com, the McLaren driver claimed that people outside the sport had a feeling that he and Max Verstappen were "better mates", saying:

“Everybody thinks we are better mates than we are. I have other people who are my real friends. My true friends. He’s a guy I get along with well off the track. That doesn’t change.

"I am good at keeping things separate. If someone treats me like s*** on track, it doesn’t mean I will treat them like s*** off the track. They are two different worlds.”

Lando Norris gives his take on maintaining radio silence on his on-track battles with Max Verstappen

McLaren driver Lando Norris stated that he had not spoken to Max Verstappen about their on-track battles in Austin and Mexico away from the track as he believed that he had nothing to say to the Dutchman.

As per PlanetF1, the Glastonbury-born driver said before the Brazilian GP:

“I don’t think we need to. I’ve got nothing to say. I still have a lot of respect for Max and everything he does – not respect for what he did last weekend [in Mexico] – but respect for him as a person and also what he’s achieved.

“But it’s not for me to speak to him. I’m not his teacher. I’m not his mentor or anything like that. Max knows what he has to do. He knows that he did wrong. Deep down, he does, and it’s for him to change.”

Lando Norris has to finish ahead of Max Verstappen at the 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix to keep the championship alive for the last two rounds. The McLaren driver needs more than 20 points on average to finish ahead in the final three races to have a shot at winning his first title in F1.