Norris shrugs off Verstappen complaints, suggests retirement

• Lando Norris said there is “nothing to complain about” with the 2026 cars, pointing to driver pay and the fact F1 always changes.
• He said Verstappen is free to walk away if he dislikes the new rules: “if he wants to retire he can retire.”
• Norris still expects Verstappen to compete hard, even if he is “not going to smile as much.”

Reigning champion Lando Norris has pushed back on Max Verstappen’s criticism of Formula 1’s 2026 regulations, saying the new cars are still enjoyable and that drivers who do not like them can leave the sport.

Verstappen had called the new rules “anti-racing” after testing in Bahrain, arguing the increased focus on energy management stops drivers from running “flat-out” without draining the battery and compromising lap time. Verstappen has previously said he would consider quitting if he does not enjoy the new generation, though he recently softened that stance with “let’s see.”

Norris, however, said he had a good time in the car and did not see a reason for the complaints.

“I had a lot of fun. I really enjoyed it,” he said. “So yeah, if he wants to retire he can retire.

“Formula 1 changes all the time, sometimes it’s a bit better to drive, sometimes not as good to drive. But yeah, we get paid a stupid amount of money to drive so you can’t really complain at the end of the day.

“Any driver can go and find something else to do, you know? It’s not like he has to be here or any driver has to be here.

“It’s a challenge but it’s a good fun challenge for the engineers, for the drivers. It’s different, you have to drive it in a different way and understand things differently and manage things differently. But you still get to drive cars and travel the world and have a lot of fun. So, no nothing to complain about.”

Norris also said Verstappen’s competitive edge will not disappear just because the cars have changed.

“I don’t expect Max is going to go out and not give a —-, you know?” he said.

“He’s going to try and win and Max is never going to not try, he’s just not going to smile as much maybe – I guess that might be the case.

“It certainly doesn’t feel as quick as the past few years and it certainly doesn’t handle as perfectly, but I’m sure if he came into this and this was the F1 car he started driving then he probably would say it’s amazing.

“Comparing to the older cars, it doesn’t feel as pretty and beautiful to drive, but it’s still pretty good. And it’s all early days, it’s early days of a regulation that’s meant to be a good amount slower.

“But if you fast forward to the end of this year and look ahead to next year already, we’re going to be going a lot quicker by then. Anyone and everyone can make their own opinions and have their own opinions, and say and decide what they want to do.

“No one should complain about that or be upset about it. Every driver has their own opinions and he didn’t like it and I like it.”