#F1 | Lando Norris was asked if he thought Mercedes had a ‘party-mode’ as Lewis Hamilton suggested:
“We [at McLaren] don’t have that, so maybe he is used to his old days when they had it back then.”
“[I don’t think Mercedes has it], so sometimes, when you are a bit off, you can create things in your head.”
The problem is that Verstappen was never a good 'racing driver'. He is undeniably quick when on his own, but has lacked the real wheel to wheel skill of the true greats.
F1 has (illegitimately) changed the overtaking guidelines to confuse fans into thinking that his signature yield or crash divebomb is a valid, acceptable overtake. The reality is that the Code of Conduct for driving on Circuits has never allowed it UNLESS space is left on track for the car on the outside. Also any contact should be an automatic penalty unless the divebombing car was sufficiently alongside in the braking zone.
Without the leniency afforded to him, Verstappen would never have been in contention for the 2021 title.
His other titles are tainted by illegal cars and benefit from the $2m cost cap overspend.