Norris likens his situation to Verstappen's after clash with Mercedes

The Sprint in Canada was all about the battle between the two Mercedes drivers. Russell started from pole position but soon had Antonelli on his gearbox. The Italian launched an attack on his teammate, during which the two made contact. A few corners later the championship leader made a mistake, which Norris capitalized on to take second place.

Afterwards, GPblog asked Norris whether he finds the current situation comparable to last year, when the Briton himself was locked in a fierce fight for the world title with his teammate Oscar Piastri. Verstappen, who up to the summer break had a clear underdog role, was able to take full advantage when Red Bull Racing suddenly made a formidable comeback after the summer. In the end the Dutchman missed out on the world title by just two points. Can Norris achieve something similar?

The McLaren driver emphasizes that he and his team are doing everything they can to maximize every weekend. “I mean, we’re still just very early on in the season. At the minute, I’m just trying to maximise every result that we can. Today was certainly one of those days where, in a way, we shouldn’t have been P2 but we were,” he explains.

According to Norris, it’s only logical that two strong drivers within the same team will battle each other. “I think it’s just what you get when you have two good drivers fighting for a championship with a good team. That’s kind of what you expect. Each individual has to fight for their own career. You don’t kind of just go out to prove your point every time, but you go because we signed up for it as an individual,” the Brit continues.

“You grow up alone wanting to be the best in the world and every driver wants to do it. So, they both have their own point to prove, they both want to go out and race, and at the minute they’re fighting more than anyone for the World Championship. So yeah, that’s what they need to do,” the reigning world champion adds.

Norris also sees opportunities for McLaren this season. Just like Verstappen last year, he’s trying to stay close enough to capitalize whenever Mercedes makes mistakes or drops points. “We’ll be there. I think we’re still lacking a bit at the minute, probably similar to last year from Max’s position. So, we’ll see how much we can hang on for the time being. But yes, obviously a day like today, we maximised everything we could,” Norris concludes.

The Sprint at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve therefore went better than expected for Norris, but Antonelli was visibly frustrated. The Mercedes driver kept pushing on the team radio for a penalty for Russell, while Wolff repeatedly instructed him to focus on the race. Russell ultimately won the Sprint, while Antonelli had to settle for third place behind Norris.

The young Italian also hinted in the press conference that he disagreed with how things unfolded. He disagreed with Russell’s clmia that drivers can’t overtake around the outside into the first corner of the circuit. According to Antonelli, that’s perfectly possible. The incident ultimately wasn’t investigated by the stewards, but it will undoubtedly be discussed extensively internally at the German team.