Janice R. Andrews
In Sunday’s Dutch Grand Prix, Lando Norris drove amazingly well to beat Max Verstappen. This race could have a big impact on the outcome of the Formula 1 drivers’ title. With nine races left in the season, Norris’s win at Zandvoort has made the title race more exciting because it shows he has what it takes to beat the current world champion.
After starting from pole position, the British driver lost the lead to Verstappen, but he quickly took it back by passing the Dutchman at his home track. From then on, Norris was in charge. He sailed to the finish line with a big lead while fireworks went off in celebration of his win.
Even though Verstappen lost first place, he still managed to get second place, which helped him keep as many title points as possible. Charles Leclerc of Ferrari also did a great job, finishing third and completing the podium.
In his talk after the race, Norris said he was happy with the race. He admitted that the first lap wasn’t perfect, but he praised the performance of the car and his ability to keep and grow his lead over Verstappen. “It feels amazing, I wouldn’t say a perfect race because of lap one again but afterwards that was beautiful,” he said. “The pace was very fast, and the car was amazing today, so I was able to relax. I could push hard to get past Max, which was the most important thing, and then I could just keep going.” In all honesty, it wasn’t that hard of a race; I had a great time.”
Norris said that around the fifth lap, he thought Verstappen would make a serious attack. When that didn’t happen, he knew he had a real chance to win. “I thought Max would start to push and get a good gap on laps five, six, or seven, but he never did.” I knew we were going to have a good fight after that, but he kept slowing down while my pace was getting faster.
The race got off to a rough start for McLaren, with Verstappen passing Norris before the first turn and George Russell passing Oscar Piastri for Mercedes. But it was clear right away how fast the McLarens were when Norris easily passed Verstappen on the 17th lap, right before the first set of pit stops.
From then on, Norris was unbeatable, and by the end of the race, he had a lead of over 20 seconds. This impressive performance not only shows that Norris is becoming a stronger contender for the title, but it also closes the gap between him and Verstappen, who still has a huge 70-point lead in the standings.
Piastri finished fourth for McLaren, while Sergio Perez for Red Bull could only manage sixth. This let McLaren pull closer to Red Bull’s lead in the manufacturers’ title, closing the gap to just 31 points.
Verstappen hasn’t won in five races in a row, dating back to 2020. Sunday’s race was his longest losing streak. “You always try to do better,” Verstappen said in an interview after the race. “We had a good start, we tried everything we could today but throughout the race I think it was quite clear that we were not quick enough so I tried to be second today.”
The next exciting race for the title will happen on September 1 at the Italian Grand Prix. Norris will have another chance to close the gap on Verstappen.
