From the worst to the best
After just one corner, Lando Norris’s Hungarian Grand Prix seemed almost over, at least in terms of the chance to win. The English driver, who started from third on the grid, found himself fifth after turn 1, having been overtaken by both George Russell and Oscar Piastri. It was a nightmare scenario that paradoxically opened the door for car number 4 to use an alternative one-stop strategy, which later allowed him to turn the race around and win with less than a second margin over Oscar Piastri.
Interviewed at the press conference, the 2024 Formula 1 vice-world champion also addressed the start, a historically tricky moment for him, especially since in 2024 he had become ‘notorious’ for losing pole position by the end of the first lap. This time, however, Lando Norris insisted he made no mistakes, quite the opposite. His clutch release was indeed excellent; the problems arrived immediately afterward.
Wrong start? No, just unlucky
“My start was good,” he explained, recalling what happened when the lights went out. “I think Charles Leclerc’s start was good as well. Oscar went to the left, and I was hoping both of them would stay on the right. I got a bit of slipstream from Oscar and had to brake on the right, but Oscar managed to stay in Charles’s slipstream, which gave him a bit more speed again.”
“At that point, it was hard for me to move left because I would have had to brake a bit,” Norris continued. “I’ll review everything and see what I could have done better. I think I was mostly unlucky with how things went. I believe if we were to do the same start again, most of the time things would go better for me than they did. So, I think it was just the worst-case scenario playing out. But my start was good, and I have nothing to complain about.” We would add that the final race result wiped out any possible criticism or doubts.
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