Lando Norris ‘almost crashed’ with Max Verstappen as Abu Dhabi GP team radio emerges
Can Lando Norris finally see off the threat of Max Verstappen in Abu Dhabi?
McLaren driver Lando Norris was heard claiming over team radio that he “almost crashed” into Max Verstappen after a minor impeding incident in FP2 at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Verstappen and Norris were involved in a near miss in the early stages of second practice in Abu Dhabi, the scene of the final round of the F1 2025 season.
Lando Norris ‘almost crashed’ with Max Verstappen in Abu Dhabi Grand Prix FP2
Verstappen slowed on the main straight after completing a timed lap with his Red Bull race engineer, Gianpiero Lambiase, initially informing him that Norris was not on a push lap behind.
Lambiase told Verstappen: “You’ve got Norris… not opening a lap behind you.”
However, Lambiase then realised that Norris actually was on a fast lap, adding: “Or maybe he is… coming through.”
Lando Norris vs Oscar Piastri: McLaren head-to-head scores for F1 2025
👉 F1 2025: Head-to-head qualifying statistics between team-mates
👉 F1 2025: Head-to-head race statistics between team-mates
The confusion left Verstappen with little time to react to the fast-approaching McLaren, with the Red Bull jinking to the left of the track on the exit of Turn 1.
Norris was less than impressed by the incident, claiming over team radio that the pair nearly made contact.
The McLaren driver was heard saying: “What’s this guy doing? Almost crashed.”
The incident was briefly noted by Race Control, with the FIA stewards taking no further action.
More on Lando Norris and Max Verstappen from PlanetF1.com
Norris, who eclipsed Verstappen by 0.008 seconds in Friday’s opening session, went on to top FP2 in Abu Dhabi with a 0.363s advantage over the Red Bull.
Norris’s McLaren teammate and fellow title contender Oscar Piastri could only manage 11th in FP2 after a heavy lockup on his qualifying simulation, trailing Norris’s time by 0.680s.
FP2 marked Piastri’s first appearance of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix weekend having been forced to hand over his MCL39 to Patricio O’Ward in FP1 as McLaren met its final rookie driver requirements for the season.
Norris heads into the F1 2025 title decider with a 12-point lead over Verstappen, the reigning four-time world champion, with Piastri a further four points behind in third.
It marks the first time since 2021 that the title battle has gone down to the final race, with 2010 the last time more than two drivers entered the last round with a shot at the championship.
Read next: Is Lando Norris going to choke?
