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Jenson Button says that the fight for the title is brutal and it is interesting to see how Lando Norris will "deal" with the collision with his teammate Oscar Piastri after the collision at the Canadian Grand Prix, and that it will be seen if his compatriot is really champion material.
Norris had a strong comeback in the Montreal race, but it all ended in disaster when he tried to get on the inside of Piastri on the pit straight, hooking the rear wheel of Piastri's car and crashing into the pit wall.
Norris needs to show if he is a champion
Norris then battled with his teammate for fourth place, while McLaren found themselves in the rare situation of not having the best pace on Sunday in Canada.
Piastri's fourth-place finish became even more significant in the drivers' championship context after Norris retired, extending Piastri's lead over Norris from 10 to 22 points.
It was a moment of deja vu for McLaren, as Button recalled his collision with Lewis Hamilton on the same stretch of track in Canada in 2011, when they were McLaren teammates. Now they will be watching to see how Norris handles this challenge.
“I like the fact that we have a fight between teammates because it’s a fight for the world championship. It’s nice that they’re going hard,” Button told Sky Sports.
“This is a moment where they have to take the bull by the horns because they don’t know when they’ll get another chance like this again, or if they’ll ever get another chance, given the rule change in 2026.”
“They’re both fighting hard for the world championship, but these things happen. Lewis and I crashed on the same plain 14 years ago! It just happens,” he explains.
“Now we’ll see if Lando is mentally strong enough and if he comes out of this stronger,” the world champion said.
“I think he is, in terms of confidence and belief in his abilities, so I’m excited to see how he goes,” added Jenson Button.
Reaction
Any potential tension between the McLaren drivers was quickly defused as Norris immediately took full responsibility for the crash.
“The number one rule is you can’t hit your team-mate and I did that,” said Norris after the race. “McLaren is my family. I drive for them. Every weekend I try to get a result for them, often more than for myself.”
"So when I let them down like this, when I embarrass myself in a moment like today, I feel a lot of regret about it. I'm not proud of it, I feel bad, and I feel like I let my team down, and that's always the worst feeling. So, of course, I can only apologize to them, and to the whole team and to Oscar."
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