Verstappen responds to threat of British fans backlash

Max Verstappen has dismissed concerns he could face a backlash from fans at the British Grand Prix following his collision with Lando Norris. 

The clash between the top two drivers in the championship on lap 64 in Austria has been the major talking point in F1 over the past week, with Norris backtracking on some of his comments on Thursday ahead of the Silverstone race.

Norris is one of the most popular drivers on the grid, leading to the prospect of Verstappen being booed by the British fans, as was the case with Sebastian Vettel in 2013 after the 'multi-21' incident with Mark Webber, and again in 2017 after his clash in Azerbaijan with Lewis Hamilton. 

But Verstappen is not concerned about the potential for fans to boo.

"I've already had that before, so I will just focus on the performance," he told media including RacingNews365.

"Everything is clear, which for me was the most important thing and we move on. Lando and I are good friends, so we spoke about it and everything is cleared.

"That is the most important thing - as long as I am okay with Lando, that is the only thing I am concerned about."

Verstappen and Norris friendship

Verstappen and Norris are good friends off the track, with Verstappen describing the talks the pair had on Monday following the race as he pledged to continue with his aggressive driving style.

"I am not going to compare drivers because that doesn't make any sense - and the only thing I cared about is maintaining my relationship with Lando, because we are great friends," he said.

"After the race, I said that we just have to let things cool down because emotions run high - we spoke mainly on Monday and came to the conclusion that we actually really enjoyed our battle. 

"But we were both looking at the inside, and it was such a silly little touch that had great consequences for us both, and a little bit more for Lando. 

"We like to race hard, we've done this for many years, not only in Formula 1, but even in online racing where we had a lot of fun together. 

"These things have to carry on because that is what we like to do - and it is great for Formula 1 as well."