Former Haas F1 team principal Guenther Steiner has issued an "apology" to Lando Norris after giving "so much criticism" to the McLaren driver this season.
Steiner’s comments follow the season-ending Abu Dhabi GP, where Norris handled the pressure to secure a maiden F1 drivers' title.
The Briton started in second but finished in third after being overtaken on the opening lap by Oscar Piastri, while Max Verstappen won the race.
Finishing in third was enough for Norris to become world champion, although he did so by scoring just two points more than Verstappen.
Despite the minimal points difference, it was Norris who ended the year on top — something Steiner has recognised.
Asked for his Abu Dhabi 'rock star', Steiner told the Red Flags podcast: "The rock star is Lando. He deserves it. He did what he needed to do to be world champion. We cannot blame him; he didn’t make a mistake at the end and brought it home.
"A very small margin at the end, but it’s almost… there is also not having it. And Max said it: he had more points.
"So, two points or one point, he’s world champion. So for sure, he’s the rock star. He’s the rock star of that race. He just did enough to win the world championship, and he was very strategic about it."
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Steiner's apology
Throughout the season, Norris has received much criticism for failing to handle pressure, making unnecessary mistakes and failing to extract the most from the MCL39.
Steiner has been vocal at times this year against the new world champion, but conceded after Norris secured the title that he must take back his words and apologise.
Discussing what Norris proved to him in the season finale, Steiner said: "What he proved to me is that, in the end, as he said, he didn’t have to get aggressive to win the championship. Did he prove that he’s one of the great champions? Not yet.
"He needs to win another few championships, in my opinion. But in this race, he did everything right. So at some stage, you need to give the guy credit, because we have thrown so much criticism on the guy.
"So, he deserves better now; we retract, and actually, by saying he’s a rock star, it’s almost an apology."
Also interesting:
Join RacingNews365's Ian Parkes, Sam Coop and Nick Golding, as they look back on the title-deciding Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Lando Norris' title victory is a major talking point, as is the hinted major changes at Red Bull after Max Verstappen's reign ended.
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