Contenders review: these points are missing for Norris, Verstappen and Piastri

16:19, 04 Dec

Updated: 17:02, 04 Dec

bySamson Ero

Lando Norris, Max Verstappen, and Oscar Piastri have reflected on key moments where they lost crucial points ahead of the title decider in Abu Dhabi.

“If I go back to Canada, probably being the most obvious.”

- Lando Norris

Norris, who was the first to respond during the press conference ahead of the race weekend in Abu Dhabi, pointed to several moments during the season, including his crash in Canada and the DNF he suffered in Zandvoort.

The McLaren driver also highlighted his disqualification at the Las Vegas Grand Prix and the strategy mishap in Qatar, among several occasions where he lost crucial points in the title fight.

“There are always little things along the way. There are probably some more obvious ones from my side. If I go back to Canada, probably being the most obvious, I just put my hands up in the air — I messed up. It cost me a good amount of points,” he began.

Lando Norris during the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix weekend - Photo: Race Pictures

“China, I was unlucky in qualifying, and then there were just a few little things along the way. It's probably like it is for everyone. There certainly is for everyone. There are some other bits where it's probably the same for all of us here,” Norris continued.

“At times, you get a bit unlucky, whether it was the DNF in Zandvoort or the disqualification — the disqualification in Vegas, as well, cost me a good amount of points.”

“I wouldn't say there's anything obvious. It was just a couple of parts from my side where I have to put my hands up and admit I didn't do a very good job, and then a couple from us as a team where we have to admit we also didn't do a good enough job, including last weekend, but that's probably about it,” he concluded.

Max Verstappen during the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix - Photo: Race Pictures

Verstappen, for his part, highlighted Red Bull’s lack of pace on several occasions but opted against identifying a single race.

“At the end of the day, of course, it's one race out of 24. Some races go a bit better than others. A lot of the races we didn't have enough pace to challenge for a win, but here we are,” he said.

Verstappen concluded by noting that the team could be proud of its campaign so far.

“In general, I'm just very proud of the season we've had and how we've come back in the second half. We'll just try and keep it fun until the end. To always pinpoint one particular moment, that's always a hard one.”

Piastri also toed the line of Verstappen, opting against pinpointing a specific incident as the biggest mishap of his campaign.

“There are a few moments to choose from, unfortunately, but I think for everyone, there are always moments. No season is ever going to be perfect,” he said.

Oscar Piastri during the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix weekend - Photo: Race Pictures

“I think it's not particularly useful to pick out, ‘I lost this amount of points here, this amount of points there,’ because everyone's lost a certain amount of points at some point along the way. Definitely on my side, there have been a few races or moments I'd like to have again. Same thing for the team, I'm sure. But yeah, picking one, I think there's one that's hurt more than the others,” he concluded.

Norris, Verstappen, and Piastri remain locked in the title fight, which will be decided at the chequered flag of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Catch up with GPblog’s paddock update

With the Formula 1 season finale upon us, GPblog’s paddock update is the best place to be. Catch up with all the action as the drivers’ championship gets decided.

Follow and subscribe to our channels on YouTube and Spotify to never miss a moment as the action heats up.

Check out the latest episode of our paddock update here 👇