Daniel Ricciardo Leaves 2-Word Advice for Lando Norris as He Prepares to Enter Max Verstappen’s “Lion’s Den”

Max Verstappen and Lando Norris’ Austrian GP clash is only the beginning of F1’s next big enmity. After his first F1 win at the Miami GP this year, Norris won’t stop at anything to convert that into more wins, and won’t be satisfied with anything less. His excessive self-criticism even after finishing on the British GP podium is an example of that. Daniel Ricciardo is the only F1 driver to have raced alongside both drivers and has some eye-opening advice for his former McLaren teammate.

Lando Norris and Max Verstappen have been close friends for a long time. But after their Austrian GP incident, the rest of the day was turbulent. After DNFing, the McLaren driver demanded an apology from the Red Bull driver, saying he’d “lose respect” for his 3-time champion friend otherwise. A few days later, Norris retracted his demand after reflecting on their ‘hard racing’, which was inevitable. On the Red Flags podcast, co-host Matt Elisofon questioned Daniel Ricciardo about this Norris-Verstappen camaraderie.

“What’s your advice for Lando entering the lion’s den?” he asked, referring to the battle with Verstappen. Initially amused with the question, the Honey Badger replied, “The only advice that I can give is… even when I came into the sport, I was like, ‘Can’t be friends with anyone. Everyone’s an enemy.’ That is the way you beat them on track. For sure, you need to carry some intensity about the way you strap the helmet on.”

“You don’t see anyone on the track as a friend,” the Aussie reiterated, adding, “They’re all competitors. You do have to create some separation, but that doesn’t mean you have to hate everyone and drive with this animosity. It’s fine to have a relationship and be mates. But we all know when the helmet is on, it’s business”, stressing on the last two words to emphasize the need for this on-track/off-track balance. “Just because maybe Max is a friend to Lando, you can’t expect Max to just give him a victory,” he further noted.

2024 will be a turning point in Norris’ F1 career. McLaren has finally given him a championship-contending car to go up against the reigning champion. The collisions, podiums, and keeping his calm in adrenaline-filled interviews are all part of the process. And Ricciardo is more than qualified to give Norris advice in this domain. After all, his clashes with Verstappen remain one of F1’s most intense intra-team battles.

Daniel Ricciardo reveals the aftermath of Baku 2018 crash with Max Verstappen

On paper, having prime Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen in one team makes for a formidable pairing. While this was the case for many races during the Aussie’s first Red Bull stint, all wasn’t pretty. Their most famous collision was the 2018 Azerbaijan GP. Fighting for P4, the Dutchman’s late defensive move on Ricciardo, who couldn’t brake in time, took both Red Bulls out of the race.

The team radio messages were heated with one blaming the other. The now-VCARB driver has finally addressed that incident 6 years later. “We hit wheels a few times. We should have known it was starting to escalate, and eventually, it did,” he confessed on the Red Flags podcast while claiming, “You never want teammates to clash. Maybe the fans do, but the team certainly doesn’t.”

Team Principal Christian Horner was naturally furious with both his drivers. As per Ricciardo, he gave them an “absolute bollocking” with the decibel level enabling everybody outside the office to overhear without any effort. To this day, clippings of that incident followed by Ricciardo’s ‘cold walk’ away from the track make for great edits. But now that the Honey Badger is back to Red Bull, it shows how harmonious everything is.

He even stands a chance to team up with the 3-time champion once again with Sergio Perez struggling to score points despite riding the fastest car on the grid. The summer break will be a pivotal period for Ricciardo, who looks forward to his ‘fairytale’ Red Bull ending. What’s your take on this? Share below.