Lando Norris laughed off Red Bull’s attempt to sabotage his start to the United States Grand Prix because the McLaren Formula 1 driver “didn’t need” the tape.
Red Bull was fined €50,000, half of which was suspended, after last weekend’s Austin race as a team member disobeyed marshal instructions by accessing the grid during the formation lap.
The purpose was to remove a strip of tape left by McLaren to help Norris position his car in the grid box correctly, ahead of starting second behind Red Bull world champion Max Verstappen.
But it didn’t have the desired effect, as McLaren’s tape had a material that would leave a mark on the pitwall when removed and Norris addressed the matter before this weekend’s Mexico Grand Prix.
“Good job by them, because they can,” said Norris, who eventually finished runner-up to Verstappen at Circuit of the Americas.
“But it didn’t matter, like I didn’t use the tape, so it was extra amusing because I didn’t need it, we just put it there in case. So it made it extra funny because they got a penalty for it and I didn’t even need it.
“They also tried to remove it and failed because we made it special so they couldn’t take it off. It was just amusing, little side quests, I guess, for the teams to entertain themselves. But yeah, we were the ones laughing about it.”
Lando Norris, McLaren
Photo by: Ronald Vording
It is understood that McLaren has done this with Norris ever since he received a five-second penalty at April’s Bahrain Grand Prix for rolling too far over his grid box at the start. Austin was also not the first time Red Bull had tried to interfere with his markers, having attempted a similar manoeuvre at the race prior in Singapore.
But McLaren had come to expect it by then, leaving a “better luck next time” note underneath the tape at Marina Bay and Norris claimed Red Bull also tried something similar in Italy, a month before Singapore.
Markers are a common occurrence throughout the grid due to the restricted view inside the cockpit, but the 25-year-old said he only uses them in worst-case scenarios.
“I didn’t use it at all because I just used the line on the grid,” added Norris. “I said I would use it in case some of it, like to the right or something and you can’t see the line. It’s just a backup if I need it.
“I used it for a little while and they tried to remove it already and I think Monza or in a couple other places. So that’s why we kind of made it like the F1 passes that you can never get out of the window ever, like that.
“It was amusing to kind of try and see them taking it off and then not going to plan. I’ll continue to use it. Sometimes I’d never use it at all because it’s almost too far away. Sometimes I do, but most 95% of the races now I use the line on the grid. So I think that’s why it was even better.”
McLaren and Red Bull are currently fighting each other for the 2025 drivers’ crown. Oscar Piastri leads the way and is 14 points ahead of team-mate Norris, while Verstappen is third and 40 off top with five rounds remaining.
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– The Autosport.com Team
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