Lando Norris has confessed that he will lose respect for Max Verstappen if he refuses to accept responsibility and apologise for his role in their lap 64 collision at the Austrian Grand Prix.
The two championship contenders were fiercely competing in the final stages of the Austrian GP after a subpar pit stop by Red Bull left Verstappen only two seconds ahead of the McLaren driver as they entered the final stint.
After a few unsuccessful overtaking manoeuvres, Norris made a bold move to the outside of his rival at Turn Three on lap 64, but Verstappen shifted under braking, causing the pair to make contact.
Both drivers sustained punctures from the collision, but Norris fared worse. His right rear tyre completely delaminated, forcing him to retire the car, while Verstappen managed to continue and finish in P5, despite receiving a 10-second time penalty.
Speaking to Sky Sports F1 about the future of his friendship with Verstappen, Norris said: "I don't know, it depends what he says. If he says he did nothing wrong, then I'll lose a lot of respect for that.
"If he admits to being a bit stupid and running into me and being a bit reckless in a way, then I'll lose a small amount of respect for him, but it's still a tough one to take when you're fighting for the win.
"I'm trying to be fair from my side and he just wasn't. I don't know, that's all I'm thinking about. I don't care now, I'm just gutted for the team."
Meanwhile, Verstappen denied moving under braking. "Of course, from the outside, it's hard to see when I brake. I know in the past it was a bit of a complaint.
"Now I always move my wheel before I brake then you brake in a straight line trajectory. It's always easy to say on the outside that I'm moving under the braking. But I think the guy in the car knows best what he's doing."
