There was a chaotic start to the Italian Grand Prix, with Lando Norris branding Max Verstappen an ‘idiot’ following a risky move on the opening lap.

Verstappen cut across the track in the early stages of the race ahead of Norris and Oscar Piastri.

Norris could be heard saying: ‘What’s this idiot doing? Come on. He’s put me in the grass and then he’s just cut the corner.’

Verstappen was then told to give the position to Norris, who took the lead down the front straight.

Nico Hulkenberg retired before the race following the formation lap.

The Sauber driver had been struggling with a technical issue.

Lando Norris called Max Verstappen an 'idiot' for a risky move early in the race
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Lando Norris called Max Verstappen an ‘idiot’ for a risky move early in the race

Verstappen cut across the track in the early stages ahead of Norris and Oscar Piastri
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Verstappen cut across the track in the early stages ahead of Norris and Oscar Piastri

Norris was left fuming following the incident as he was left in the grass
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Norris was left fuming following the incident as he was left in the grass

Verstappen was told to give the position to Norris, who took the lead down the front straight

Hulkenberg had finished in 12th place in qualifying but wasn’t able to take part in the race.

Verstappen, meanwhil, had edged ahead of Norris to secure pole position.

In doing so, Verstappen set the record for the fastest F1 lap ever at a time of 1 minute 18.792 seconds.

Going into the race Piastri was top of the standings with 309 points ahead of Norris on 275 points and Verstappen on 205 points.

Speaking ahead of the race, Verstappen had expressed confidence about making a major impact.

‘It’s very difficult to nail the lap around here with the low downforce,’ said Verstappen. ‘Under braking it’s easy to make mistakes.

‘Q3 felt good and to be on pole is fantastic. The car has been working well the whole weekend and I’m very happy to be able to fight for pole.

‘We were still lacking a tiny amount going into qualifying. We made some final changes that allowed me to push a bit more. For us it’s a great moment.

Nico Hulkenberg retired before the start of the race following the formation lap
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Nico Hulkenberg retired before the start of the race following the formation lap

‘This season the race has always been more complicated for us, but we’ll give it everything we have.’

Verstappen won four titles consecutively from 2021 to 2024.