McLaren’s Lando Norris felt “amazing” after charging through a ‘statement’ P1 finish (1:30:45.519) during today’s 2024 Dutch GP. The Briton also dubbed it as a “tough, but very enjoyable” race at the Circuit Zandvoort.
Following a spectacular pole grab in Qualifying, Norris (P1) has once again clinched the win on Max Verstappen’s (P2) home ground. The McLaren racer denied the Dutchman his fourth straight home win in the Netherlands.
Starting from pole position, Norris saw his victory hopes dimmed in the beginning phase of the race. Verstappen surged ahead at the start, taking the lead at the first corner and quickly pulling out of DRS range.
Nevertheless, Norris remained resilient. As the race progressed, he discovered a burst of speed while Verstappen faced grip challenges during the mid-race phase. Consequently, he reduced the distance, overtook the three-time world champion, and took the lead, which he maintained firmly.
Furthermore, he expanded his advantage both before and after the front-runners made their sole pit stops. Ultimately, he crossed the finish line with a commanding 22.8-second lead over the Red Bull #1. This triumph, following his earlier success in Miami, also significantly reduced Verstappen’s championship lead.
Regarding his race victory today, the Bristol native expressed his enthusiasm in the post-race session.
Lando Norris 2024 Dutch GP: P1 “feels amazing” after a ‘tough, but very enjoyable’ race
In the post-race interview today, Lando Norris revealed his ‘over the moon’ excitement of clinching his second win of the 2024 F1 season. Speaking in in parc fermé, he expressed that his P1 finish “feels amazing” with the race being “tough, but very enjoyable“.
“It feels amazing.”
Talking in more depth, he explained that he did not execute the race start as he had hoped at the Circuit Zandvoort. Specifically, his starting run on Lap 1 was very disappointing as he lost his pole position to Verstappen. But, as the race advanced, he retook his position on Lap 18 from the with a dart to the inside of Turn 1. Explaining this at the post-race press conference, he added:
“Once again, I wouldn’t say a perfect race, because of lap 1 again. But afterwards, that was beautiful. The pace was very strong – the car was unbelievable today, so I could get comfortable, I could push and get past Max, which was the main thing, and I just got it from there.”
“So, honestly, [it was] quite a straightforward race, still tough, but very enjoyable.”
Following this, he touched upon on the moment he believed a race win was possible. Continuing his interview, he reflected on this by adding:
“I think from quite early on, actually, from probably lap 5, 6, 7.”
“I expected Max to start pushing and then get a bit of a gap, but he never did. So, from that point, I knew we were in with a good fight, but he seemed to just keep dropping off, and then my pace was getting better.”
“So, as I said, it’s a nice feeling inside the car, and especially when I got past, I could just get comfortable. I could push, I had clean air, and that’s always a big help.”
Afterwards, Norris acknowledged that most Dutch fans likely supported Verstappen during the event. However, he also noted having strong support in the country, and thanked those who backed him throughout the weekend. Noting this, he said:
“I have a lot of Dutch fans and Dutch supporters, so I thank them very much.”
“I mean, I’m sure some are a little upset, but I hope it was a good race. There are a lot of them supporting me, so I appreciate it a lot.”
With his win today, Lando Norris has managed to bring down his point gap with Max Verstappen to 70 points. Currently, he is sitting at the P2 spot of the 2024 Driver Standings, while Verstappen is the leader with 295 points.
As for their next battle, the two racers will continue their ‘piping-hot’ rivalry at the 2024 Italian GP. The racing event will be held at the historic Autodromo Nazionale Monza track between 30th September to August 1st.
Featured Image credit: McLaren F1 Team
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