Lando Norris has taken his maiden Grand Prix win after beating Max Verstappen by seven seconds to win the Miami Grand Prix. The Englishman drove a brilliant race to be the first winner from Somerset scine Jenson Button in 2012, he took the lead of the race after undercutting Verstappen before a perfectly timed safety car allowed him to seal the victory.
Norris drove the perfect race ahead of the three time champion, it has the feeling of a long overdue win and is further indications of the turn around and progress McLaren has made in the last year. The timing of the safety car gave Norris a free stop after Verstappen looked to have no answer.
McLAren decided to go long during the first stint, that gave him the lead as others pitted behind the safety car.
But it wasn’t only down to luck, Red Bull who have won now four of the six Grands Prix looked once again to struggle for pace like in Melbourene. That was shown by Sergio Perez when he stopped on lap seventeen, before Verstappen made a rare error running over a bollard. Which was caused by what Red Bull described as significant floor damage
Then followed a virtual safety car to recover the bollard and Verstappen pitted in an attempt to try and overcut the Norris. But despite the Red Bull’s pace advantage the McLaren driver covered h im off before pulling away and taking his first win, losing his unwanted record of most podiums without a win he extended a fortnight ago in Shanghai.
Charles Leclerc was third the Monacan had lost out to Norris at the start of the race before he was briefly overtaken by Oscar Piastri early on. However the second McLaren had a difficult race dropping down the order after a collision with Carlos Sainz.
Fighting back tears as his jubilant McLaren team lifted him aloft in the pit lane as wild celebrations commenced, Norris said: “About time! What a race. It’s been a long time coming. Finally I’ve managed to do it.”
Sainz was fuming, Piastri forcing him off the track when he passed the Ferrari at Turn 11 a few laps earlier, after which Sainz complained vociferously on the radio that he should be given the place back. But the stewards did not agree and felt Piastri had done nothing wrong.
Leclerc, whom Sainz wanted to be waved by, then pitted at the end of lap 19, shortly after which Verstappen made a mistake at the chicane and cut the second part – knocking a bollard off the kerb and carrying it through his car until he reached the exit of Turn 16.
The collision wrecked Piastri’s front wing and he had to stop for it to be replaced, but Sainz managed to get away with minimal damage and he was comfortably able to stay ahead of the lacklustre Perez for fourth place to the end.
Sergio Perez also struggled like Verstappen for pace in the second Red Bull, he was three seconds behind Sainz and ahead of the Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton by nearly two seconds. Yuki Tsunoda was seventh ten seconds behind Hamilton, the RB driver spiltting the two Mercedes as GeOrge Russell was eight seconds behind behind Tsunoda.
Fernando Alonso was ninth the Aston Martin driver just over a second ahead of Esteban Ocon, the Frenchman scoring Alpine’s first points of the season. Nico Hulkenberg spilt the Alpine’s, he was for seconds behind Ocon missing out on points he was five seconds ahead of Pierre Gasly.
While Norris took victory incidents and damage saw piastri drop to thirteenth and ahead of Guanyu Zhou by just over two tenths. Daniel Ricciardo spilt the two Sauber’s as he was nearly two and a half seconds ahead of Valtteri Bottas. Lance Stroll was seventeenth ahead of Kevin Magnussen and Alex Albon, with Logan Sargeant the only retirement from his home Grand Prix.
Related
- Miami GP – Qualifying Result 2024
- MIAMI GP – Max Verstappen takes seventh consecutive pole a tenth ahead of Charles Leclerc
- Miami GP – Sprint Result 2024
- MIAMI GP – Max Verstappen takes three second win ahead of Charles Leclerc in the sprint
- Miami GP – Sprint Qualifying
- MIAMI GP – Max Verstappen beats Charles Leclerc to sprint pole by just over a tenth
- MIAMI GP – Max Verstappen fastest by a tenth in practice ahead of Oscar Piastri
- PRIXVIEW – Miami Grand Prix
