Despite Verstappen starting the race from 17th on the grid and Norris securing pole position in Brazil, the Red Bull racer overcame the conditions to take his first victory since June at the Spanish Grand Prix. The 27-year-old is now 62 points clear of Norris with three rounds to go.
Norris blew a great chance to put himself truly in contention for his first drivers’ title from the start of the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.
It was always unlikely that the McLaren star would surpass Verstappen this season but Interlagos can mark the site where the 24-year-old’s dream died.
Mercedes driver George Russell got a superior launch to Norris and stole the lead of the Sao Paulo GP at the start.
The McLaren driver then failed to repass his British compatriot, before both pitted as the Virtual Safety Car for Nico Hulkenberg’s stricken Haas at Turn 1 finished.
Verstappen, plus Alpine pair Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly, gambled on a full safety car and got even luckier when Franco Colapinto crashed under the SC to bring out the red flags for a free change of tyres. The Dutchman then delivered a raft of fastest laps once ahead of Ocon.
Former Arrows driver Danner believes Verstappen’s ability to string together a flurry of new fastest laps as the track dried was a ‘slap in the face’ for his rivals like Norris.
It also proved a point to those questioning Verstappen’s ability after controversial incidents in recent rounds.
“That was an incredible slap in the face for his opponents,” Danner noted, via Speedweek. “In the end, Max drove one fastest lap after the other. He also showed his opponents, ‘You see? I can do better’.
“In addition to the masterclass of driving, it is also this mental stability that impresses me deeply. Ok, there was a bit of luck involved, too. But the decisive factor on this day was to stay cool in the most difficult conditions, and he stayed that way.”
Along with believing Verstappen dealt Norris and his rivals a ‘slap in the face’ by winning the Sao Paulo Grand Prix from P17 on the grid, Danner thinks the McLaren driver got ‘lucky’.
The German feels Norris should have been punished ‘more harshly’ for an aborted start blunder.
Aston Martin driver Lance Stroll dropped a clanger on the initial formation lap when he spun at Turn 4, before then simply driving into the gravel and beaching the Canadian’s car that his mechanics had hastily repaired after he crashed in qualifying to necessitate an aborted start.
But while the yellow lights flashed to inform the field of the aborted start, Norris and Russell both pulled away for an extra formation lap.
The stewards would eventually issue them both a reprimand plus a €5,000 (£4,000) fine. But Danner feels Norris deserved a bigger penalty.
“Lando Norris is lucky that he was not punished more harshly for his actions at the start,” he added. “He made the mistake of simply driving off, even though everyone should know that you should only drive off when the light is green.”
