Max Verstappen kept his counsel – well, a few curt remarks – as he stepped out of his Red Bull. But if you could read his mind, there was fury written in the speech bubble next to his head.

It related to the first corner, the pivotal moment at which Oscar Piastri won the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. Verstappen finished second.

As for Lando Norris, he has cursed himself as clueless, a muppet and an idiot in the space of a few days. But until his McLaren team-mate Piastri triumphed next to the Red Sea he was also known as the world championship leader.