Lando Norris left stunned after Spanish GP exchange with Max Verstappen caught on camera

Lando Norris was surprised by the news Max Verstappen gave him after the Briton was targeted by Charles Leclerc during final practice for the Spanish Grand Prix.

Lando Norris and Max Verstappen speak after qualifying in Barcelona(Getty Images)

Lando Norris couldn’t hide his disbelief after Max Verstappen told him what punishment Charles Leclerc received for crashing into him in training.

The incident, which occurred towards the end of Saturday’s final free practice session, was described as an example of “road rage” by TV pundits. Leclerc, unhappy at being blocked by the McLaren while performing a flying lap, appeared to cross the track and hit Norris on purpose.

The Briton was stunned and reported on the radio that his front wing had been damaged as a result of the collision. The Ferrari driver, however, argued that he had simply “misjudged the position of his car”.

Leclerc was reprimanded by the stewards but avoided a sporting penalty for his actions. And the same decision was made for Lance Stroll after a similar incident which saw the Aston Martin driver make contact with Lewis Hamilton in the same session.

These decisions were only made shortly before the start of qualifying. So it was only after Norris snatched pole from Verstappen that he learned that Leclerc had escaped with contact earlier in the day.

And he couldn’t hide his surprise since it was the Dutchman who announced the news, in a conversation recorded by the camera of a nearby phone. Verstappen can be heard saying: “It’s pretty crazy (Leclerc) got a reprimand.”

Norris, wide-eyed, replied in disbelief: “Is that what he got?” When Verstappen confirmed this, the Briton still had a confused expression as he added: “My whole front wing was ruined.”

Fortunately for Norris, the incident clearly did not deter him. After beating Verstappen on pole by just two hundredths of a second, the Briton said he had produced “probably my best lap ever” to get the better of his rival and ensure that, for only the second time of his F1 career, he would start a Grand Prix in the lead.

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