“Like Handing a Cookie”: Max Verstappen Takes Hilarious Jibe at Lando Norris Moments After 1st Lap Humiliation

The first part of the 2023 Brazilian GP racing is over and what an action-packed overtake-friendly race it was. One must admit, the Sprint race at Interlagos gave, especially the fans, a lot more insight into what to expect from the main race than any other Sprints. We saw how important it was to manage your tires and how every driver needed to maneuver the two back-to-back DRS zones. Something Max Verstappen did not have to worry about, as he mockingly expressed during the post-sprint interview.

The Dutchman won his fourth sprint race of the season out of the six in Brazil. In doing so, he had to dispense Lando Norris, and he did so with relative ease. The Dutchman was ahead of Norris in the first corner and never looked back. Although he did remain only a second and a half ahead of the Brit for most of the race. This is where Verstappen gave us more insight, albeit jokingly, into the race management at Interlagos.

Max Verstappen takes a hilarious jibe at Lando Norris after the 2023 Brazilian GP Sprint race

The Dutchman maintained the 1.5-second gap to Norris for most of the race to keep him out of the DRS zone. However, in the end, he pushed his Red Bull to bring that gap up to 5 seconds. This showcased that Verstappen wasn’t pushing his RB19 to the limit and giving the McLaren man false hope. This was perhaps all down to tire management, however, when asked about it during the post-sprint race interview, Verstappen couldn’t help himself but take a dig at Norris.

When Tom Clarkson asked, “Okay so you take Lando at the start and thereafter it looked like you were just controlling the pace, keeping Lando where you wanted him. Was that the case?”

After a big sigh, Verstappen hilariously replied, “Yeah, it’s like, you know, handing a cookie.” But then laughed it off with a, “I’m joking!” before he caught the fury of his friend.

Read More: Max Verstappen Hands Out Karmic Justice While FIA Goes Easy on Lando Norris’ Crimes in Brazil

Norris might forgive Verstappen for mocking him, but his statement reveals a lot about the strategic race management every team needs to follow for the main race in São Paulo. Although if this subtle hint wasn’t enough, Verstappen laid it out as well.

Verstappen spills the beans on the go-to strategy for the Brazilian GP

The Dutchman chose humor to reveal the go-to strategy for the race at Interlagos. However, he gave us the long version as well and explained why he wasn’t going flat out during the entire race right after the sprint race. In fact, the Dutchman put out a PSA for the entire grid with his statement.

“For everyone out there you can’t push flat out. I think we learned a lot during that race, and hopefully we can do something similar tomorrow,” warned Verstappen. No foot to the peddle and extreme braking. The way to go is smart, subtle, and efficient racing at Interlagos, and that’s exactly what he will try to do from the start.

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However, the men on heels would try to spoil the party at turn one. Let’s see if Verstappen has to fight for a win or if his 17th race win of the season will be a straightforward one.