Lando Norris told ‘daring’ Franco Colapinto is doing something he needs to try against Max Verstappen

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The United States Grand Prix saw the latest instalment of the battle between McLaren star Lando Norris and Red Bull’s triple world champion Max Verstappen.

After nearly a month of waiting, Max Verstappen and Lando Norris continued their title battle at the Circuit of the Americas with the Brit trying to overhaul a hefty 52-point deficit.

Verstappen secured Sprint Race pole and his fourth victory in the format this season on Saturday, but it was Norris who took pole position for Sunday’s race, in part thanks to George Russell’s crash at the end of Q3.

However, Verstappen got the better of Norris heading into the turn one and by the time the first round of pit stops had been completed the pair were battling for the final spot on the podium after a phenomenal race from both Ferrari drivers.

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Norris’s McLaren was much quicker than Verstappen’s Red Bull in the final ten laps of the race and the run down to turn 12 was the Brit’s best chance of finishing third in the race.

Controversy followed as Norris took the position from his rival but was off the track and earned a five-second penalty as a result. Verstappen also went off the track trying to defend his place, but the stewards quickly ruled in his favour.

Will Buxton was speaking on the F1 Post-Race Show at the United States Grand Prix about Norris’s difficulties in getting past Verstappen and said that the 24-year-old should have taken inspiration from Williams star Franco Colapinto.

Will Buxton tells Lando Norris he lacks ‘killer’ inside him after Max Verstappen battle

Talking about Norris losing more ground to Verstappen in the Drivers’ Championship and his comments after the race, Buxton said: “We know he’s always very hard on himself but there’s a truth there that he didn’t drive well enough today.

“I just wonder if he’s got that killer inside him because we’ve seen it quite a few times this year.

“He keeps trying the same move on Max, he’s not sort of shaking it up or learning from previous experience.

READ MORE: McLaren driver Lando Norris’ life outside F1 from parents to celebration

“He took too long I think to make the move and by that point, Max had already shaken him up, realised where he was going and played a beautiful defensive drive every single time through.

“When you compare each of Lando’s attempts, I’m thinking about Franco Colapinto who had a look at Fernando and then the next time around, he let Fernando move to the inside but then he moved even further to the inside in a really, really late move.

“That was bold, that was daring, that was decisive, that was like, instinct, go!

“That bit it just wasn’t there and if you’re going to take it to Max, you’ve got to try and surprise him, you’ve got to try and do the thing that he’s not expecting from you and I think Lando just keeps doing the thing that Max expects and Max is just going to have him covered the whole time.”

How Franco Colapinto thrived at the United States Grand Prix as Lando Norris struggled

Norris once again had the perfect platform to succeed in Austin but failed to capitalise.

Martin Brundle berated Norris for failing to nail his race start as he opened the door for Verstappen, although the Dutchman overtook him off the track but was allowed to carry on due to the stewards deciding it was a first-lap incident.

Meanwhile, Colapinto had to battle from 16th on the grid to secure his second points finish of his career.

Teammate Alex Albon made contact with Esteban Ocon but Colapinto did brilliantly to slowly work his way through the pack while looking after his tyres.

Ocon apologised to Colapinto for stealing the fastest lap from him, but it was nevertheless a very impressive performance.

Norris’s approach to overtaking Verstappen was quite one-dimensional, but the Dutchman is one of the best defensive drivers in the sport’s recent history.