Lando Norris, British driver for McLaren Mercedes, continued to establish himself among the top-tier drivers in Formula 1 with a victory in the 2024 Dutch Grand Prix on Sunday, Aug. 25.
Norris wrested the lead from Dutchman and three-time defending F1 champ Max Verstappen on lap 18. Norris never looked back on the way to his second win of 2024 and of his F1 career, emerging victorious in Miami earlier this year.
For McLaren Mercedes, it is the team’s first victory at the Circuit Zandvoort in almost four decades, last winning at the track in 1985.
“It feels amazing,” Norris said postrace. “It wasn’t a perfect race because of lap one. Afterwards, it was beautiful. The pace was strong, and the car was unbelievable. I could push and get past Max [Verstappen], which was the main thing. Honestly, it was kind of a straightforward race, kind of tough but still enjoyable.”
Norris took the checkered flag by slightly over 21 seconds ahead of runner-up Verstappen. Charles LeClerc completed the podium with a third-place finish for Ferrari.
“We had a good start,” Verstappen said. “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.”
While Norris started from the pole, it was Verstappen who got the better start when the lights went out to lead lap one. Norris kept Verstappen in his sights until making what proved to be the critical overtake of the race on lap 18.
Pit stops began on lap 25 when LeClerc came down to the service of his crew for fresh rubber to attempt an undercut on Oscar Piastri.
On lap 28, Verstappen took his turn on pit road, followed one lap later by Norris. Norris and his McLaren crew had a solid pit stop to come back out on track in front of Verstappen. Norris’ McLaren teammate Piastri completed the pit cycle.
From there, Norris spent the second half of the race pulling away from Verstappen and the rest of the field, cruising to the win.
Today marked the fourth event of the 2024 season with no yellow flags or retirements from the race.
Formula 1 will stay in Europe for the running of the Italian Grand Prix on Sunday, Sept. 1 at the legendary Autodromo Nazionale Monza. Coverage will be provided by Sky Sports and broadcasted by ESPN.
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