Norris: No need for Verstappen apology after Austria incident

Lando Norris says he spoke to Max Verstappen about last weekend's crash in Austria but doesn't feel the incident warrants an apology from the reigning world champion.

"Honestly, I don't think he needed to apologize," Norris said Thursday.

"I don't expect an apology from him. I don't think he should apologize. I thought it was, as a review, good racing, at times maybe very close to the edge."

Verstappen made contact with Norris on Lap 64 of the Austrian Grand Prix in a battle for the lead that left both drivers with punctured tires. The collision dropped Verstappen to fifth and dealt him a 10-second penalty, while Norris was forced to retire from the race.

The McLaren driver initially said he'd lose respect for his on-track rival and off-track friend if he didn't own up to being at fault for the crash. However, Norris said Thursday that he regrets much of his postrace remarks.

"I think like some of the things I said in the (media) pen after the race were more just cause I was frustrated at the time," Norris said. "A lot of adrenaline. A lot of emotions. I probably said some things I didn't necessarily believe in, especially later on in the week."

The crash led to criticism for Verstappen, who had been involved in numerous incidents with Lewis Hamilton in a 2021 title fight. McLaren team boss Andrea Stella said after the Austrian race that he felt these issues resurfaced because Verstappen wasn't penalized harshly enough three years ago.

"It was a pretty pathetic incident in terms of what ended both our races," Norris said. "It wasn't like a hit, it wasn't like an obvious bit of contact. It was probably one of the smallest bits of contact you could have but with a pretty terrible consequence for both of us, especially for myself."

He added: "We've spoken about it, we've talked about it, and we're both happy to go racing again."

Verstappen and Norris enter this weekend's British Grand Prix ranked first and second in the drivers' standings, with the champion carrying an 81-point advantage.