SCANDAL IN INTERLAGOS! Lando Norris Accuses Red Bull of Using Illegal Engine in the Brazilian GP: The FIA Investigates and Fans Are Left Speechless
By Grok Motorsport, November 16, 2025
The world of Formula 1 is in total shock. Just a few hours after the checkered flag at the Brazilian Grand Prix, Lando Norris, the championship leader with McLaren, dropped a bomb that could change the course of the 2025 season. “I have proof that they cheated!” exclaimed the British driver in an improvised press conference in the Interlagos paddock, pointing directly at Red Bull and its star, Max Verstappen. The accusation: the Austrian team would have used an illegal Honda engine, secretly modified to enhance the performance of Verstappen’s RB21, allowing him a miraculous comeback from the pits to third place. The International Automobile Federation (FIA) wasted no time and announced an immediate investigation. The preliminary results, leaked this morning, have left fans stunned: is a historic disqualification looming?
It all began on Sunday, November 9 at the José Carlos Pace Autódromo, under a cloudy and threatening sky that recalled the epic battles of yesteryear. Norris, starting from pole position, dominated the race from start to finish, crossing the finish line with a 10-second advantage over his teammate Oscar Piastri, who finished fifth after a difficult start. But the real drama involved Verstappen. The Dutchman, eliminated in Q1 due to an error in the configuration of his car, started from the pit lane after a setup change and the installation of a new engine. What followed was a driving masterclass: in 71 laps, the three-time world champion advanced 16 positions, overtaking rivals such as George Russell (Mercedes) and Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) in extreme maneuvers, to finish on the podium behind the McLarens. “The car was alive today,” Verstappen admitted post-race, with a smile that betrayed his relief.
However, the euphoria was short-lived. While Norris lifted the trophy on the podium, muffling the boos of a minority of Brazilian fans loyal to Verstappen, the McLaren team was already preparing its offensive. Sources close to the paddock reveal that during the race, Woking engineers detected anomalies in Red Bull’s telemetry data. “Max’s engine produced 20 horsepower more than regulated on the Interlagos straights,” explained an anonymous McLaren analyst. “It wasn’t just the setup; it was something prohibited. They changed the engine in the pits, but it was not a standard one. It had modifications to the fuel map and the turbo that violate the FIA technical regulations for 2025.”
Norris, visibly furious as he stepped off the podium, did not hold back. In a statement that quickly went viral on social media – accumulating more than 5 million views on The video, recorded by a fan in the mixed zone, shows Norris gesticulating vehemently, flanked by his track engineer, who nods silently. The phrase “I HAVE PROOF!” resounded like thunder in the McLaren garage, where the team boss, Andrea Stella, had already alerted the stewards.
The FIA’s response was immediate and forceful. Just 45 minutes after the accusation, a team of technical inspectors broke into the Red Bull motorhome, sealing Verstappen’s RB21 and extracting samples of the Honda RBPTH002 engine. The investigation, led by power units expert Nikolas Tombazis, focused on three key points: fuel consumption, exhaust flow and the approval of the electronic control software (ECU). According to FIA regulations, each team can use a maximum of four engines per season per driver, with penalties for exceeding this. Red Bull had already consumed five units on Verstappen’s chassis before Brazil, justifying the change, but suspicion falls on whether the new engine was an undeclared “mystery upgrade”, possibly secretly developed by Honda in Japan to avoid the $145 million budget cap.
The preliminary results, revealed in an emergency press conference at 2:00 AM local time (midnight in Europe), have left the paddock in suspense. The FIA confirmed “irregularities in the engine power map”, with evidence that Red Bull exceeded airflow limits by 5%, which could equate to an advantage of 0.3 seconds per lap on the Interlagos straights. “We are stunned by the data,” Tombazis stated. “This is not a minor error; it is a potential violation that requires extensive analysis.” Fans, who were following the development live on X, exploded in a whirlwind of memes and conspiracy theories. #RedBullCheats became a global trend, surpassing 2 million mentions, with users like @F1Insider sharing homemade graphics comparing Verstappen’s power curves with Norris’s.
Red Bull, for its part, was tight-lipped. Christian Horner, the team principal, issued a brief statement: “We are confident in the integrity of our power unit program with Honda. Any suggestion of irregularity is unfounded and detrimental to the sport. We will cooperate fully with the FIA.” Verstappen, more cautious, avoided direct comments: “I did my race, the car worked well. The rest is noise.” But privately, Milton Keynes sources admit panic: a disqualification in Brazil would subtract 15 points from Verstappen in the championship, expanding Norris’ lead to 64 points with only three races left (Las Vegas, Qatar and Abu Dhabi). In addition, it could trigger million-dollar fines and technical sanctions that mortgage the constructors’ title, where Red Bull is already 22 points behind McLaren.
This scandal is not isolated. The 2025 season has been plagued by controversy: from the duct tape incident in Austin, where Red Bull was fined £43,000 for trying to sabotage Norris’s position on the grid, to the booing of Lando in Mexico and Brazil, which the VCARB (ex-Racing Bulls) team publicly condemned. “It does not reflect our values,” said Laurent Mekies, head of VCARB, after a viral video of a mechanic encouraging fans to whistle at the Briton. Norris, who has dealt with criticism online – “I’ve gotten better at ignoring outside noise,” he recently confessed – sees this accusation as an opportunity to clean up his image. “It’s not about me against Max; it’s about fairness. If we win the title, let it be fair.”
The fans are divided. On forums like Reddit, threads like “How Lando’s title collapsed in the chaotic Brazilian GP” (from 2024, but revived) accumulate thousands of comments, with Verstappen defenders alleging “McLaren sabotage to Piastri” and Norris fans demanding justice. “If Red Bull used an illegal engine, Verstappen should be disqualified. Period,” @LandosHopes tweeted, adding 329 likes. Others, like @ElPredestinato, ironically: “Red Bull’s PR is incredible; they say it was ‘a small mistake’.”
While the FIA deepens the investigation – final results are expected on November 20 – the paddock holds its breath. Will Verstappen lose his podium at Interlagos? Will the points be voided, catapulting Norris to the brink of the title? One thing is certain: this Norris “test” has shaken the foundations of F1. In a sport where technology and cunning intertwine, the line between genius and cheating is as fine as a spoiler. Interlagos, cradle of legends, could have witnessed the birth of another: that of a champion who does not give in to deception.
