Exclusive: Norris refutes suggestion Red Bull building car around Verstappen

Lando Norris has asserted it is not possible for Red Bull to design its race car to suit Max Verstappen.

Verstappen is enjoying a highly dominant Formula 1 season and can secure his third title at the Qatar Grand Prix next weekend.

The Dutchman has heavily outperformed team-mate Sergio Perez across the campaign.

The deficit between the pair has led to suggestions that Red Bull’s construction and development is focused solely on appeasing Verstappen.

Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff stated earlier this year that Verstappen “tends to destroy his team-mates because the car is designed around him”

Verstappen denied the claim, and now Norris has said that it is not the way a team operates in F1.

“It’s not down to the team to just make a car design for a person,” Norris exclusively told RacingNews365.com

“Maybe that's a perfect world. It’s our job to deliver no matter what the car is.

“Max said something very similar the other day after Toto made the comment about the Red Bull. I don't think you can just design a car for someone.

“It just doesn't work like that. It's very much down to the driver to drive the car they’re given.

“I think this way, if I end up being slower than my team-mates because of whatever reason, then I'm not doing a good enough job.

“It’s as simple as that. It's the driver's job. That's why we're here.”

‘Drivers paid enough money to deliver’

Norris added that it should be down to the driver, not the team, to extract the potential out of the car when it’s difficult to drive.

“For me, the most important thing is to make a quick car,” he said.

“I think what people fail to understand sometimes from the outside is that a driver's job is to drive whatever car they are given as quickly as possible.

“Yes, you want the car to be nice to you and suit you. But drivers get they get paid enough money to make the best of every circumstance.

“Whether it's a car they like, they don't like is tricky, is safe, whatever it is. It's our job to go and just drive what the team give us.

“You can have a quick car and one that is great to drive but at the end of the day, I will always pick driving a difficult car that's quick than a nice car that’s slow.

“And I think we know that our priority is just to make a quick car. If it's difficult it’s difficult, then we can work on making it a better car to drive.

“But at the end of the day, I care what car I drive because I would love a nice car to drive. But I would pick every day a quicker car over an easy car. Because I think that's our job.”