‘Straight Talks’ between Max Verstappen and Lando Norris at Drivers’ Briefing

Max Verstappen And Lando Norris reportedly discussed how to defend and overtake fairly at a “busy” driver briefing in Mexico.

Hot topic this weekend F1 The Mexico Grand Prix decided whether Verstappen and Norris would remain within the rules a week ago in Texas when the McLaren driver was penalized by stewards.

They discussed it in person during the traditional driver briefing on Friday, Sky Sports’ Craig Slater reported.

“There was a lively driver meeting in Mexico City this evening, with Lando Norris and Max Verstappen having a direct exchange on defense and overtaking,” Slater said.

“But I was told they were “calm” and “respectful.”

“The rules of engagement and how to improve them dominated the discussions. Most drivers felt that standards needed to be improved and what was already an ongoing assessment needed to be intensified.

“The meeting began with the drivers asking the FIA how the stewards make decisions in cases such as the Verstappen-Norris collision. They wanted to better understand the process.

“Interestingly, in providing this explanation, the FIA has admitted that it will prepare several updated racing rule statements and send them back to the drivers for their consideration.

“Some have taken this as a kind of admission of guilt – that current guidelines allow for loopholes to be exploited. Most considered it positive that the FIA was able to take a critical look at itself and implement changes.

“Another point of discussion was whether the stewards actually use all the rules available to them in cases like the Norris-Verstappen hot spot.

“Some have noted that in such cases the rule of pushing another driver off the track may still apply. Even though the rules already exist, pushing another rider off the track is unacceptable.

“In other words, there is a clear and demonstrable difference between holding a corner acceptable and approaching a corner with the primary goal of hitting another driver.

“Ultimately, there is an understanding that the rules will never be perfect. There is a desire to tighten the language and try to better define the guidelines.

“The FIA’s position on driver manuals is that they were requested by the drivers, developed by the governing body in consultation with them and ultimately approved by the GPDA, the drivers’ association. the last few seasons.

“As for the GPDA, its chairman Alex Wurtz said: “We know and value the work of the stewards. We know they have a difficult role and situation. We really appreciate that we have a good dialogue to make decisions more consistent first.” , which is definitely true, but now we all collectively see that there is still room for improvement. Nobody wants over-regulation and we want to see good racing and there is a belief that with a collective push we will improve. recommendations for next season.”

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc was asked to weigh in on the debate.

Leclerc responded: “I won’t go into detail about what’s being discussed internally, but we’re all willing to improve on some of the scenarios that we saw in Austin because I don’t think we were all on the same page. on this.

“However, the FIA have been very open to discussion and I think they have recognized that we need to change some things.