Verstappen stays out of Red Bull-McLaren off-track war

Max Verstappen has made it clear that he’s staying out of the intensifying off-track rivalry between Red Bull and McLaren.

Max Verstappen has made it clear that he’s staying out of the intensifying off-track rivalry between Red Bull and McLaren.
While the triple world champion is focused on his on-track battles with close friend Lando Norris, the tension between their teams continues to escalate. Red Bull had McLaren’s ‘mini DRS’ rear wing banned after Baku, and McLaren retaliated with the T-tray controversy during the Austin weekend.

The FIA has since closed the matter, with Red Bull’s Dr. Helmut Marko insisting that it’s impossible for their mechanics to make illegal adjustments during parc ferme due to the presence of cameras and constant scrutiny.

However, McLaren CEO Zak Brown countered: “I would like to see the guys at Red Bull sign an affidavit under oath that they never used this system,” referring to the ride-height system that now has to be sealed by FIA inspectors in parc ferme.

FIA single-seater chief Nikolas Tombazis said the governing body won’t be reviewing historical footage, although he acknowledged that it’s “impossible to rule out with certainty” whether illegal tweaks might have occurred.

Meanwhile, Dutch racing figure Tom Coronel believes McLaren’s performance has been hit hard by the loss of their ‘mini DRS’. “You can now see a very clear difference with that rear wing. You see on the images that those parts of the wing no longer go up. Losing that little trick has cost them,” Coronel told Viaplay.

The bickering between McLaren and Red Bull took another turn in Austin when Brown accused Marko of undermining F1’s progress on mental health awareness with his comments about Norris.

“That was never the point at all,” Marko responded. “What Zak made of it, I do not think is entirely fair. And it’s a shame, because I have always had a good relationship with Lando.

“This was purely a statement referring to his experience and maturity. In two years, he will be mentally a lot stronger. And we all know that Max also made mistakes in his first years in Formula 1.

“Lando is a fantastic driver,” Marko added, “but the pressure also plays a role. And with more routine and success, you will automatically handle it better.”

Despite the disputes off-track, Verstappen and Norris are choosing not to get involved.

“I think I did the correct thing,” Norris said after the race, when asked about his controversial penalty. “But I don’t make the rules. Max drove well, it was a fun race between us, a good battle. He defended well, he did everything he had to do.”

Verstappen believes the off-track tension is more about personal differences between team bosses Christian Horner and Zak Brown than anything related to the teams themselves.

“It’s not my problem and it doesn’t interest me at all,” Verstappen said. “And I don’t think it’s necessarily McLaren that’s making all this noise, it’s more Zak’s work.

“I think he doesn’t like Christian and Christian doesn’t like Zak. But the fact that they don’t have warm feelings for each other is not my problem. I still have a great relationship with Zak,” Verstappen added.

“It’s not like we call each other and talk, but I just saw him and we’re fine. So I’ll read and listen to all this news, then turn off the screen and go and watch MotoGP.”

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