Fierce Verstappen rival FINALLY apologises following controversial smash

One of Max Verstappen's fierce championship rivals has apologised for a controversial incident.

Verstappen has built up plenty of rivalries over the years, with his dominance over the past three seasons being threatened at times by Ferrari drivers, McLaren drivers and, most memorably, Lewis Hamilton in the hotly contested 2021 drivers' championship.

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Indeed, Hamilton's rivalry with Verstappen has lingered on ever since, with British Formula 1 fans booing the Dutchman for failing to verbally congratulate Hamilton when he claimed his first victory since 2021 at the recent British Grand Prix.

However, 2024 has seen a new British challenger to Verstappen's dominance in the shape of McLaren driver Lando Norris, who currently sits second in the championship as Verstappen chases a fourth consecutive title.

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Norris apologises for Verstappen smash

Norris and Verstappen have been involved in several scraps for race victories already this season, including at the Austrian GP where the pair collided, handing Mercedes' George Russell his first win since 2022.

Norris' rise over the past few seasons has been meteoric, and preceding his first career win in Miami earlier this year, his 2023 season was filled with seven podium finishes, including six second-place finishes.

One of those second places came at last year's Hungarian Grand Prix, the site of this weekend's latest instalment of the 2024 season.

Verstappen claimed victory over Norris by 33 seconds, highlighting the supreme dominance he and Red Bull had over the competition last year.

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However, it was Norris that stole the show amid the podium celebrations, with his well-renowned champagne celebration going horribly wrong.

The Brit accidentally knocked Verstappen's winners' trophy over, causing it to break into two separate pieces. Fortunately for Norris, Verstappen saw the funny side, and the pair took to social media to show off the repaired trophy, which Norris reportedly paid for.

Ahead of this weekend's race at the Hungaroring, Norris has commemorated last year's podium disaster by revealing a new helmet design based on last year's trophy.

He has even collaborated with Herend Porcelain, the crafters of the Hungarian GP trophies, apologising to them on social media for last year's mishap.

In an Instagram post, the 24-year-old wrote: "Honour to team up with @herendporcelain on this hand painted masterpiece for Hungary. When we got together we knew we wanted to do something special and here it is. From the bottom of my heart thank you (and sorry about last year) ❤️."

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A post shared by Lando Norris (@landonorris)

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