The British driver asserts that "any driver on the grid" would have made the maneuver that caused fresh controversy between Norris and his McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri during the recent race.
Norris made contact with Piastri on the exit of the third corner at the Singapore circuit after contact with the leading car sent his car sideways.
This incident threatens to disrupt the well-managed team unity that the British team has managed to maintain between both competitors through strategic leadership.
Entering the event, Norris trailed his teammate by a significant margin in the championship standings, and narrowed that gap by only a small amount after finishing third behind winner George Russell and Verstappen, with Piastri following in P4.
The Briton maintained he had acted appropriately in overtaking his teammate.
"Every driver on the grid would have attempted what I did," he stated. "Should you fault me for going for a racing gap, you shouldn't be in F1.
"My car was a bit too close to Verstappen, but that's racing. Nothing serious happened, I'm certain I would have finished in front of Oscar anyway because he had the less favorable part of the track on the outside.
"Naturally I need to review it and the last thing I want is collision with my racing partner. I am the one who must avoid any incidents. I would put myself at risk just as much if similar things happened.
"I'll review it but the governing body clearly thought it was fine and the team did, as well."
The driver rejected he had been too forceful with his teammate. "I touched Max," he explained, "meaning I wasn't forceful with my racing partner."
The Australian showed displeasure about the collision. He said over the in-car communication that the squad's choice to take no action about it was "not fair."
Post-event, he was circumspect, saying he needed to watch the incident before making additional statements.
"The primary issue is two cars making contact," he commented. "That's never what we desire, so I'll analyze it in greater detail."
The Australian has previously been the competitor to lose out in no fewer than multiple debatable incidents this season.
During the Hungarian Grand Prix, he was the leading McLaren driver initially but Norris was permitted to use a alternative approach to beat his partner, a decision that competitors have scrutinized.
And in Italy, the Australian was ordered to let Norris back past for P2 after the British driver was held up by a lengthy service. Piastri complained that he believed there had been an understanding that a slow pit stop was just normal competition that had to be accepted, but complied regardless.
Internally, he was not pleased about that circumstance, and he and the team held discussions to resolve it.
But questioned after the Singapore Grand Prix whether he had any concerns that Norris might be receiving preferential treatment, Piastri said: "None."
Was he convinced the squad had been equitable throughout the championship?
"Ultimately, yes," Piastri said. "Might situations have been better at certain points? Certainly, but ultimately it's a learning process with the whole squad and I'm extremely happy that the intentions are positive, if that is understandable."
Team principal the Italian commented: "We'll have thorough reviews, constructive discussions and, like after Canada, we'll come back more resilient and even more united."
Stella stated that although the team had reviewed the incident in its direct consequence, "this contact is, in reality, a consequence of different circumstances that occurred between Norris and Verstappen."
He continued: "Oscar made some comments while he was in the car but that's the kind of attitude that we expect from our drivers. They have to make their position clear, that's what we require of them.
"Our analysis needs to be very detailed, highly methodical, it needs to consider the viewpoint of our both competitors, and then we will form a common opinion based on which we will determine whether we can simply validate our initial interpretation or there's additional factors that we should conclude.
"Whenever we start our conversations with the drivers, we always recall, as a foundation: 'This is challenging'.
"Since this is the single area in which, when you compete as teammates, actually you cannot maintain identical objectives for the both competitors, because they want to pursue their individual aspirations. This is a foundational principle of the way we race at McLaren.
"We must remain accurate, because there's much at risk. That's not only the championship points, but it's also the trust of our competitors in the manner we function as a squad, and this is, if anything, more fundamental than the championship standings."
The controversy deflected attention from the British team securing the constructors' championship for the second consecutive year.
It is the team's 10th constructors' title, moving them above Williams in the all-time list into runner-up position behind leaders Ferrari, who have claimed it 16 times since the championship's inception in 1958.
This achievement represents one of the earliest times a team has accomplished this. It matches their rival's achievement in securing the title with multiple events remaining in last season, although that was a 22-race season compared with 24 this season.
McLaren's advantage has reduced as the championship enters its final stages. That is due in part to the characteristics of the latest tracks not favoring its capabilities, and also because the team ceased the development program some time ago, while Mercedes and Red Bull still have updates coming to their cars.
This choice by the team was rooted in the fact that they were experiencing reduced benefits in improving this vehicle, typical when a concept has such an advantage at the start of a season, and that they wanted to ensure they were ready for the following season.
The British driver, though, is fully conscious of the scale of his team's achievement, and the remarkable turnaround they have demonstrated under Stella and chief executive officer their leader from just over two years ago, when they began the previous championship close to the rear of the field.
"Another title is a great thing," he commented. "Looking at where we were three years ago, we have outperformed every squad in terms of development in a period when it is more challenging to do so with increased limitations and reduced testing.
"At a time when it should be harder than ever to excel, that's exactly what the team has done and given us, by a significant margin, the best car on the starting lineup.
"That's always a pleasing aspect to say. It always brings satisfaction on your face. But we've also performed very well as a team in terms of competitors, between Oscar and me {pushing each other
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