Verstappen Accuses Norris of Costing Pole Position

(GMM) Max Verstappen’s championship chase took a tense turn in Singapore after the Red Bull driver accused Lando Norris of costing him pole position.

On team radio, the Red Bull engineer quipped that he can “thank” his “friend” for missing out on top spot – a clear reference to the McLaren driver.

Verstappen later told reporters a rival had been “cruising” in front of him during his final Q3 run. Forced to abort the lap, he warned: “So that’s noted. Will be remembered as well.”

When pressed to name the driver, Verstappen clarified: “Not Oscar (Piastri).”

“I mean, sometimes of course it’s always a bit more complicated in certain scenarios,” he added. “But in this case, in Q3 with only 10 cars on the track, I think it could have been avoided.”

Second placed qualifier Max Verstappen of the Netherlands and Oracle Red Bull Racing in the Drivers Press Conference during qualifying ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Singapore at Marina Bay Street Circuit on October 04, 2025 in Singapore, Singapore. (Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images) // Getty Images / Red Bull Content Pool //

Red Bull advisor Dr Helmut Marko was also unhappy.

“Overall, we’re happy to finally be competitive in Singapore,” he told ORF. “It’s just a shame that Max is second and not first. He was up by a tenth and a half in the final run, but Lando Norris blocked him in the final sector.

“I don’t know if it was intentional or not, but at that point pole position became unattainable.”

He repeated the criticism to Sky Deutschland. “Lando Norris’s action was incomprehensible. He completely blocked Max in the last two corners. I hope he just wasn’t looking in the mirror and that it wasn’t intentional.”

Norris, though – amid a weekend in which he is clearly off both Verstappen and championship leader Piastri’s pace, hit back hard.

“If someone has me on their mind, that’s their problem,” he told Viaplay.

In the media pen, he added: “Red Bull always complains. There was no problem with Max driving behind me. There was such a huge gap, so no problem. They’re always complaining – about everything! That’s Red Bull.”

McLaren CEO Zak Brown backed his driver. “Did I watch the wrong footage?” he asked Viaplay. “Otherwise, I can’t figure out what they’re even talking about when they say Lando blocked him.

“As far as I’m concerned, this is a non-issue. Maybe it stems from frustration, or perhaps Max was distracted because he saw someone in front of him.”

Former F1 driver Giedo van der Garde said the alleged block was marginal. “As Max approaches Turn 16, you see Norris turning in,” he explained on Viaplay. “After that, Max loses momentum and misses the apex by half a meter. Then he sees his delta time deteriorate.

“That’s when he’s frustrated.”

Sky Deutschland pundit Ralf Schumacher agreed with Norris. “We can talk about dirty air. But Lando is on his in-lap, and nothing can bother Max except visually,” he said.

“Lando is doing his job, entering the pits. He’s driving slowly and to the left. I’m sorry, but I can’t agree with Max on this one.

“The only thing you can do if you’re 100 percent fair is for the race engineer to say to Norris ‘Hey, watch out. Max is coming from behind. Make sure you don’t slow down.’ That could have been done, but he wasn’t in the way.”