It will be no more Mr. Nice Guy for the next round of Formula One’s big fight as Lando Norris and Max Verstappen square up at Silverstone this weekend.
The British Grand Prix, with three race winners on home soil from all four different winning teams this year already compared to the one team which was head and shoulders above the field in that Wednesday tyre test.
McLaren’s Norris and Red Bull three-times world champion Verstappen collided while fighting over the lead in Austria a fortnight ago to gift victory instead to George Russell, his first win with Mercedes.
Hamilton, a seven times world champion who has taken the checkered flag a record eight times at Silverstone including for the last four years running, and Mercedes both know they cannot afford another dismal showing after Verstappen won there in 2020.
Russell said: “I think we’re riding a wave at the moment for sure. You never failed to dream for sure Anything can happen.”
Silverstone was the halfway point in 11 races to date and provided maybe the least surprise of a season that had been building up when Norris clashed with Verstappen, already pretty much guaranteed accident potential between each other.
Although Verstappen pushed his advantage over Norris to 81 points, he has come under criticism for his driving and attitude.
McLaren team boss Andrea Stella also ratcheted up the tension by suggesting Verstappen had been let off too lightly in the past and Norris declared he was owed an apology from Formula One’s new world champion, who has seen his friendship with him fraying.
That looks unlikely to happen and Norris will have to psych himself up for.
