LANDO NORRIS' TWO-WORD REPLY TO GEORGE RUSSELL SPEAKS VOLUMES AFTER MAX VERSTAPPEN CRASH
Lando Norris sent a cheeky message to George Russell after crashing into Max Verstappen during the Austrian Grand Prix.
Russell, 26, clinched only his second Grand Prix victory in Formula 1 by narrowly pipping Oscar Piastri to the post at the Red Bull Ring on Sunday. His unexpected win came as a result of a collision between Verstappen and Norris, who were in first and second place respectively with just 10 laps remaining.
The crash, which occurred when Norris attempted a daring take over, ended up costing the 24-year-old dearly. He was forced to retire, and although Verstappen, 26, only had to change a tyre, the extra pit stop ultimately plunged the Dutchman down into fifth.
Later in the day, Russell shared a jubilant photo with his trophy on Instagram, and Norris, whose actions effectively handed Russell the win, left what some thought was a cheeky comment on the post. "Congrats mate," he wrote, much to the amusement of F1 fans.
"Lando congratulating George lmao. He knows what he's doing there," one user laughed. Another quipped: "LOL. Norris takes Verstappen out then congratulates the guy who took his win off him. Savage."
After the race, as Russell watched the replay of the crash in the cool-down room, he couldn't help but chuckle about it. "We shouldn't laugh," he admitted as he shared a giggle with Piastri, who came in second, and Carlos Sainz, who secured third place.
Later, the Norfolk-born racer spoke about his victory: "[It's] incredible. It was a tough fight out there at the beginning of the race just to hold onto that P3 and I saw on the TV Max and Lando getting pretty hard. I knew Lando would be wanting to get that race win.
"The team have done an amazing job to get us into this fight and you've got to be there to pick it up the pieces and that's where we were. I couldn't believe how close we were to Max and Lando, [winning] was a possibility, you are always dreaming but as I said you are so proud to be back on the top step."
"The team have worked so hard, they've made so many strides since the start of the season. The last two races have been incredible so more to come."
This triumph sees Russell, currently sitting seventh in the Drivers' Championship, widen his lead over Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton and narrow the gap on Piastri, who's sixth, to a mere point. Verstappen continues to lead the table with 237 points, a staggering 81 points ahead of Norris in second place. Charles Leclerc, meanwhile, trails Norris by six points in third, while Verstappen's Red Bull colleague Sainz is in fourth position.
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2024-07-01T09:19:58Z dg43tfdfdgfd