India, Dec. 19 -- A long, white sectional sofa lay in the middle of the room, in a setting so surreal it could have been a scene from the sci-fi show Severance.

Max Verstappen, a 28-year-old Dutchman who was Formula 1 world champion for 1,457 consecutive days, entered and sat in the middle. Oscar Piastri, a 24-year-old Melbournian widely tipped to be a future champion, joined him moments later. The man of the hour, Lando Norris, 26, from Glastonbury, was the last to enter.

Aware that the cameras were rolling, they smiled at each other awkwardly between sips of sparkling water. Until 10 minutes earlier, Verstappen, Piastri and Norris had been hurtling around the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi at 220 miles an hour, in the race of their l...