Brown rips into Marko over Norris 'rituals' jibe

McLaren CEO Zak Brown has ripped into Helmut Marko following the Red Bull advisor's ill-thought-out remarks on Lando Norris.

Marko made fun of Norris upon learning the British driver "has to observe certain rituals" ahead of a grand prix "in order to be able to perform at all".

The 81-year-old made clear that Max Verstappen would again win this year's drivers' title as he has "the mental strength" to beat his rivals, whereas Norris "has certain weaknesses, especially when it comes to the start".

In response, Brown was left far from enamoured when asked for his view on Marko's remarks, particularly as Norris has expressed in the past his struggles with mental health, particularly at the start of his F1 career.

Brown felt Marko was wholly insensitive to have played upon Norris' race-day habits.

"I read Helmut's comments, which I thought were disappointing but not surprising," said Brown, speaking to media, including RacingNews365.

"Lando has been an ambassador for mental health. Toto [Wolff, Mercedes team principal] has spoken about mental health.

"It's a serious issue we've tried to talk about, to bring to the forefront, to make it okay to talk about, so to maybe kind of choose, poking at that situation, is pretty inappropriate and sets us back 10, 20 years.

"But it's all fun and games in You know how some people go racing and what tactics they use from a sporting perspective, but I thought that one was in pretty poor taste."

Brown is adamant that Norris Is "as focused as ever" on the final six grands prix and three sprints as he seeks to close the 52-point gap to Verstappen at the top of the drivers' standings.