Lando Norris directed a middle finger at Max Verstappen during Sunday's Miami Grand Prix, but it is his McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri who continues to dominate the 2025 season, while Verstappen remains unfazed by the gesture.
Starting from pole, Verstappen and Red Bull struggled to keep pace, as acknowledged by team advisor Dr Helmut Marko. "Max showed his magic on one lap," he said. "But in the race we saw how far behind McLaren we are. We are talking about seven tenths of a second."
Piastri secured his third consecutive grand prix victory, extending his championship lead over Norris to 16 points.
Norris, however, expressed his frustration with Verstappen after a heated wheel-to-wheel encounter, with onboard footage capturing the Briton raising his middle finger at the quadruple world champion.
"It's the way it is with Max—it's crash or don't pass," Norris said. "But he's ruining his own race. He's not racing very smart."
Verstappen countered that he was merely making the most of a race where he couldn't challenge for the win. "Of course I tried a few things with those McLarens," the Dutchman said, "because I have nothing to lose. A bit of fun, because I can't make much else of it."
He also showed little interest in Red Bull's failed protest against a yellow flag incident involving George Russell, which could have promoted him to third. "It doesn't really matter whether you finish third or fourth," Verstappen insisted. "That's not why I'm here. At one point I thought 'never mind—I'll go home soon'."
Addressing Norris' middle finger and subsequent criticism, as well as his broader reputation as a 'bad guy' on track, Verstappen was dismissive about why he should be concerned.
"Why? Is that a problem?" he told Viaplay. "I defend myself with the means at my disposal, just like every other Formula 1 driver."
