Formula 1 United States GP

Stella: Marko’s Norris “weakness” barb worse than Verstappen swearing

F1 title hopeful Norris has previously opened up on mental health challenges

Andrea Stella, Team Principal, McLaren F1 Team

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Tiffany Cromwell and Valtteri Bottas, Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Kevin Magnussen, Haas F1 Team Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Jock Clear, Senior Performance Engineer, Scuderia Ferrari with Mattia Binotto, CEO and CTO, Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Toto Wolff, Team Principal and CEO, Mercedes-AMG F1 Team

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing Nico Hulkenberg, Haas F1 Team Kevin Magnussen, Haas F1 Team

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Valtteri Bottas, Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Andy Cowell, Group CEO, Aston Martin F1 Team, on the grid

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Red Bull Racing RB20 steering wheel of Sergio Perez

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

The grid with a view of Turn 1 ahead of the Sprint

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Nico Hulkenberg, Haas F1 Team, gets out of the car on the grid

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Valtteri Bottas, Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber, removes his helmet on the grid

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Lance Stroll, Aston Martin F1 Team, on the grid

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Valtteri Bottas, Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber, on the grid

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes-AMG F1 Team, on the grid

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Shaboozey and Gordon Ramsey pose in front of the car of Lando Norris, McLaren MCL38, on the grid

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Zhou Guanyu, Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber, removes his helmet on the grid

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB20, George Russell, Mercedes F1 W15, Lando Norris, McLaren MCL38, Charles Leclerc, Ferrari SF-24, Carlos Sainz, Ferrari SF-24, the rest of the field at the start of the Sprint

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB20, George Russell, Mercedes F1 W15, Charles Leclerc, Ferrari SF-24, Lando Norris, McLaren MCL38, Carlos Sainz, Ferrari SF-24, the rest of the field at the start of the Sprint race

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB20, Lando Norris, McLaren MCL38, George Russell, Mercedes F1 W15, the rest of the field away

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Race start, as drivers race into the first corner

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Lando Norris, McLaren MCL38, George Russell, Mercedes F1 W15, Charles Leclerc, Ferrari SF-24, Carlos Sainz, Ferrari SF-24, the remainder of the field at the start of the Sprint

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Lando Norris, McLaren MCL38, George Russell, Mercedes F1 W15, Charles Leclerc, Ferrari SF-24, Carlos Sainz, Ferrari SF-24, the rest of the field at the start of the Sprint race

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Lando Norris, McLaren MCL38, George Russell, Mercedes F1 W15

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB20, Lando Norris, McLaren MCL38

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Lando Norris, McLaren MCL38, Carlos Sainz, Ferrari SF-24, Charles Leclerc, Ferrari SF-24

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Valtteri Bottas, Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber C44 battles with Zhou Guanyu, Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber C44

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB20, Lando Norris, McLaren MCL38, George Russell, Mercedes F1 W15

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB20, 1st position, in Parc Ferme

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, 1st position, Carlos Sainz, Scuderia Ferrari, 2nd position, congratulate each other in Parc Ferme

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, 1st position, Carlos Sainz, Scuderia Ferrari, 2nd position, chat in Parc Ferme

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, 1st position, Lando Norris, McLaren F1 Team, 3rd position, chat in Parc Ferme

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Carlos Sainz, Scuderia Ferrari, 2nd position, celebrates in Parc Ferme

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Sting with the Sprint top 3: Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, 1st position, Carlos Sainz, Scuderia Ferrari, 2nd position, Lando Norris, McLaren F1 Team, 3rd position

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Marshals clear away the car of Valtteri Bottas, Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber C44

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

The car of Valtteri Bottas, Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber C44, is moved away on a flatbed truck

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber C44 wooden plank detail

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Zak Brown, CEO, McLaren Racing, Mohammed Ben Sulayem, President, FIA

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Mattia Binotto, CEO and CTO, Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber, watches down the pit lane

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Mondo Duplantis and his fiancée Desiré Inglander

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Pato O'Ward, Reserve Driver, McLaren F1 Team

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Valtteri Bottas, Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber C44

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Pole man Lando Norris, McLaren MCL38, parks his car in Parc Ferme

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Pole man Lando Norris, McLaren F1 Team, celebrates in Parc Ferme

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Liam Lawson, Visa Cash App RB F1 Team, and Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin F1 Team

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes-AMG F1 Team for Sky Sports F1

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Oscar Piastri, McLaren F1 Team, chats with Pole man Lando Norris, McLaren F1 Team, in Parc Ferme

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Lando Norris, McLaren F1 Team, receives his Pirelli Pole Position Award from Pole Vaulter Armand Duplantis

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Top three qualifiers Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, pole man Lando Norris, McLaren F1 Team, Carlos Sainz, Scuderia Ferrari

2024 United States Grand Prix - Saturday

Andrea Stella has criticised Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko for questioning Lando Norris’ mental capacity to challenge for the F1 title and insists his comments are worse than Max Verstappen’s press conference F-bomb in Singapore.

Marko recently claimed in German outlet Motorsport Magazin that Verstappen’s title rival Norris “has some mental weaknesses”.

It is unclear what Marko was referring to but Norris had made a frank admission ahead of last month’s Italian Grand Prix about how nervous he is ahead of a race.

The McLaren driver also spoke back in 2021 about suffering from depression when he first broke into Formula 1.

McLaren chief executive Zak Brown said Marko’s comments set F1 back “10-20 years” after other stars had also spoken out about mental health issues.

Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton opened up on his battle with depression, with his Mercedes boss Toto Wolff discussing his own mental ill health.

Now McLaren team principal Stella has been critical of Marko’s remarks and said they were more “severe” than those of Verstappen, who was hit with a community service punishment after swearing during a press conference at the Singapore Grand Prix last month.

“I think in what Helmut said, there's a huge, missed opportunity,” Stella told Motorsport.com when asked about Marko’s comments.

“The missed opportunity is that, rather than reinforcing the support to the work that has happened over the last couple of decades, above all the last decade in the openness around talking of mental health issues, they are so important.

“I was actually proud of what F1 have been able to do, what the drivers have been able to do or sportspeople when they talk about that, when Lando has been an ambassador of talking openly that sometimes it's okay not to be okay and not necessarily this being about him, but the topic.

“Then you hear what Helmut said, and it's like you destroy in a comment the work of 20 years. Max was addressed for swearing. For me, this is much more severe in terms of what a member of the F1 community has said rather than one bad word in the wrong place.”

Dr. Helmut Marko, Consultant, Red Bull Racing

Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool

Stella highlighted seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher as a driver that would also suffer from confidence issues from time to time – despite dominating the sport for years.

“Having worked with great drivers, I can say each driver was very, very different but all incredibly exceptional,” added Schumacher’s former performance engineer at Ferrari.

“Superb from a driving point of view, but very different from an emotional point of view, view of life, the way they were using their spare time, the way in which they were aggressive in the car. Very different.

“Like, for instance, I've already said a few times that Michael appeared to be very self-confident, but actually his confidence came from working with the team. Like himself, sometimes he wasn't very confident at all.

“The confidence was coming through the work ethic, the work that you put into what you are doing, therefore you know you are doing a good job, you see the result and you gain your confidence - and we are talking about Michael Schumacher, right?”