Lando Norris 'hates everyone' while racing in F1 and makes Max Verstappen stance clear
Lando Norris has plenty of friends up and down the Formula 1 paddock but, when the helmet goes on, the McLaren driver says he completely disregards all of those feelings
by Daniel Moxon · The MirrorThough friendly out of the car, Lando Norris says he "hates everyone" the moment the visor comes down on his racing helmet.
This season, for the first time, the affable Brit is in with a real shot of what would be a maiden Formula 1 drivers' title. He is chasing down Max Verstappen who is 52 points ahead with six rounds remaining in the 2024 season - three of them using the Sprint format.
Norris is a popular figure in the F1 paddock and has a friendly relationship with most of his rivals, including Red Bull driver Verstappen. But that is all forgotten when he gets behind the wheel.
The 24-year-old insists he has no intention of playing nice with title rival Verstappen or any of his fellow competitors when fighting on track. And he dismissed the "nonsense" suggestion that his friendship with the Dutchman may change the way he competes.
"As soon as I put the helmet on, I hate everyone," Norris told The Athletic. "That does not change. A lot of people think, because I get along with someone here or just play on a game with someone, that you are just best mates in life, no matter what you do.
"That is just nonsense. We do those things. We have similar interests. We play padel together, that kind of stuff. And I like Max as a guy, I think he is a very genuine guy. But that does not change anything when I am on the track."
The clash between Norris and Verstappen in Austria earlier this season is evidence that both are prepared to go over the line when wheel-to-wheel with one another. And the Brit says his friendship with his Dutch counterpart actually increases his desire to get the better of the Red Bull racer.
He added: "I think the people you actually get along with more out of the track are the people you want to beat more when you are on the track, which is the opposite thought to what a lot of people have. They think because you are mates there, you are too nice on the track. I think it is the complete opposite."
Norris has closed the gap to Verstappen over the last six races since July's British Grand Prix, when the Dutchman boasted an 84-point lead. A maximum of 180 points are up for grabs across the final six race weekends and the McLaren man insists he is still in with a chance of leapfrogging his rival.
He said after his last win in Singapore last month: "We've executed things perfectly as a team, especially to get Oscar into P3. But we need to do it at every race until the end of the year if I want to have a chance to get Max. We are working hard and if I keep doing what I have done this weekend, then it is definitely possible."
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