Montoya: Verstappen takes the piss, Norris needs to take Max out
F1 NewsWednesday, 30 October 2024 at 15:55
Juan Pablo Montoya suggests that Lando Norris fight fire with fire when racing against his nemesis. Max Verstappen, the ex-Formula 1 driver questioned the Red Bull driver's tactics in recent races and proffered simple advice to the McLaren driver: Take Max out!
Much has been said and written about the recent battles between the two 2024 F1 world title contenders, Verstappen and Norris. In a nutshell, both have received penalties that cost them valuable points. Norris at the United States Grand Prix, Verstappen during Sunday's Mexico City Grand Prix.
Not shy of a brawl on track (or verbal for that matter!) and speaking to the media crew at InstantCasino.com, Montoya said of the Verstappen versus Norris saga: “There are so many exciting things going on, particularly the incidents involving Lando and Max.
"I thought Lando was going to step up and take Max out. He needs to do that. The stewards had decided that after Austin they were going to be a lot more strict on Max and penalise him properly. It makes for amazing racing. I
"Max takes the piss out of how far he takes things. The only way to stop him is to run him over. Max needs to know that he has something to fear from Lando. When Carlos [Sainz] dive-bombed him, he didn’t give him a fighting chance."
Montoya: Max is the bully
“Lando has way too much respect for him," ventured Montoya. "Which in itself is not a bad thing. Lando is a great guy, and he just wants to race fair, but you can’t if you’re racing someone like Max who doesn’t race fair. For us, watching it is amazing. It’s terrific TV.
“It is surprising that Lando just gets out of the way. Max is the bully. As a racer, it is not what you want to see, but it is a smart play. Max is more used to guys like Lewis [Hamilton] who wouldn’t stop at taking him out.
“Max has two approaches; if he is desperate for pace, which the Red Bull has been, Max can try to run Lando over and crash and take the points away, or if he doesn’t have the position to do that, he will just ride around and take the points. That’s all he has to do. It’ll be hard for Lando to win from here.
“When you have a guy like Lando who is very fast and a very clean driver, you can’t go trying to fight a championship against Max with Lando saying how much respect he has for him and he's the best driver in the world!
“You might think that, but he shouldn’t be saying that publicly. I really like Lando, but he needs to speak a little less and not play the victim. You won’t win by playing the victim. You might win some battles, but you are going to lose the war," explained Monty.
With four rounds remaining, two of them - Sao Paulo included - are Sprint Race weekends which means more points on offer., Verstappen leads Norris by 47 points.
More fireworks between Verstappen and Norris in Sao Paulo?
Looking ahead to this weekend's Sao Paulo Grand Prix, Montoya added: "We will see more fireworks in Brazil. F1 is getting so good right now. At some point, Lando needs to stand his ground and say, ‘Screw you; I can crash into you, and it’s ok.’
“I wasn’t in the drivers’ meeting afterwards to know what happened, but when Max came out, he made it clear nothing was going to change from his side. It’s a way of him telling the stewards and the FIA he doesn’t care what they think. Sooner or later, however, that attitude is going to come back and bite him."
“The stewards shouldn’t come down harder on Max. I think it is great what he does. He knows what the rules are and he pushes them. The first penalty was very clear and 100 percent fair. Lando was there at the apex. He had to give him room, and he didn’t.
“The second penalty? When you look at the ways the rules are written, Max never even tried making the corner. Max should have gone back to the track and let Lando by.
“For me the biggest problem is why give Max a ten-second penalty when Lando got a five-second penalty in Austin? It doesn’t make sense," added seven-time Grand Prix winner Montoya, in what could be interpreted as a swipe at the FIA-appointed F1 Stewards.
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