MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — We finally have a new Formula One winner.
Lando Norris took his first victory at the Miami Grand Prix, managing to hold off an attacking Max Verstappen after the safety car period and exit the DRS range on fresher tires (giving the McLaren an advantage) .
“I mean, the whole weekend was good,” Norris said after the race. “I just had a few little setbacks along the way. But I knew that on Friday we had the pace. (There were) just a few mistakes here and there. But today we managed to put it in place. We found the perfect strategy. It all paid off. So, thank you to all of McLaren, to everyone. And I want to say hello to my mother and father.
The race ended up being a thriller. Approaching Turn 1 at the start, Sergio Pérez overtook the Ferrari duo and nearly plowed into Verstappen, narrowly missing the rear of his teammate. Stewards checked whether the Mexican driver had made a false start, but decided no further investigation was necessary. Meanwhile, Oscar Piastri got off to a flying start, moving up three places in the second round to P3. Two laps later, he attacked Charles Leclerc and slipped into P2. Although Verstappen began to accelerate on lap 17, Piastri did not back down, matching the reigning world champion’s speed as Leclerc chased him less than a second behind.
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Norris found serious pace after the virtual safety car period (triggered by Verstappen hitting a bollard), and a full safety car arrived shortly after when Kevin Magnussen hit Logan Sargeant, sending the Williams into the barriers and out of the race. The safety car picked up Verstappen, who was second, and slowed the Red Bull while Norris stopped in the pits.
It came down to fresher tires versus a faster car – and Norris had it under control. As time passed, the Briton’s lead continued to grow. Well over four seconds on lap 45. Just over five seconds with 10 laps to go. Piastri was reminded on the radio that Norris was leading the race and “we don’t want to provoke a safety car here” as he chased down Daniel Ricciardo, who was P16.
Norris: “WOOOOOO! WOOOOOO! Haha!! Ohhhh, it’s about time! I love you all! I love you all so much. We did it Will, we did it!!”
-Luke Smith (@LukeSmithF1) May 5, 2024
The final margin was ultimately more than seven seconds.
Norris joined the F1 grid in 2019 and completed more than 6,000 laps in six years before the Miami Grand Prix weekend. He has already taken pole position (at Monza in 2021) and has achieved several podiums over the years. But the first victory always seemed to elude him.
“What do I say to (McLaren)? I’m just proud, really,” Norris said. “I mean, a lot of people. I guess I doubted myself along the way. I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my last five years, in my short career. But today we put it all together. So it’s all for the team. I stayed with McLaren because I could believe in them, and I do. And that’s exactly what we proved today.
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(Photo: Clive Mason/Getty Images)