Lando Norris believes he lost the Spanish Grand Prix by making a poor start which allowed Max Verstappen and George Russell to overtake him.
The McLaren driver started from pole position but fell to third after being passed by his rivals on the run to turn one.
Although he was able to recover to second behind Verstappen and finish within a couple of seconds of the winner, Norris insisted he was capable of winning this race.
“Not ‘could’ – ‘should’ have [won],” Norris said. “I got a bad start. Simple as that.
“The car was incredible today. I think we were for sure the quickest. I just lost it in the beginning, so I’m disappointed.
“[There’s] a lot of positives, one negative and that kind of ruined everything. I know that I can just work on it for next time, but apart from that, a good amount of points. A big thanks to the team, because the car was amazing.”
Although Norris appeared to have held off Verstappen along the run to the braking zone at the start, he believes the momentum that Russell was able to get behind the pair of them to sweep around the outside into the lead was what ultimately cost him.
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“There’s only a little bit to Max that I lost,” he explained. “It wasn’t like he was completely alongside.
“It was more that George was on the outside and kind of had me over. So fair play, well done to Red Bull and Max. Another job done for them, but a shame that we lost it at the same time. A bit frustrating, but we’ll work on it for next time.”
Verstappen complained Norris put him on the grass at the start, but the stewards decided no investigation was necessary.
Heading into the next two rounds of the triple-header at the Red Bull Ring and Silverstone, Norris is optimistic about having further opportunities to challenge for victories.
“Austria and Silverstone are two of my favourite tracks, in terms of performances and where I’ve performed well at,” he said. “So I’m excited.
“We’re on a good roll, we’re doing well. I need to just tidy up a few little bits and we’ll be on top.”
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2024 Spanish Grand Prix
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