Lando Norris won the driver of the day award at the Chinese Grand Prix last weekend after an excellent runner-up finish. Max Verstappen looked virtually unbeatable, but Norris denied Red Bull a one-two.
He’d started the race fourth on the grid but passed the Aston Martin of Fernando Alonso and capitalised on a safety car to leapfrog Sergio Perez. He was then able to hold off the Mexican in the closing stages.
It was the Briton’s best result since the Brazilian Grand Prix at the end of last season. He remains fifth in the championship, but is now only 11 points behind Carlos Sainz and 20 clear of teammate Oscar Piastri.
The 24-year-old did extend his unwanted record for most podiums without a victory (now 15). But it’s surely just a matter of time before he sheds that title.
Norris had also shone in Friday’s running, showcasing what Damon Hill called ‘pure talent’ as he out-paced the field by 1.3 seconds in a wet sprint qualifying. But things unravelled at the start of the race.
He made a poor initial getaway, surrendering the lead to Lewis Hamilton, and then tried to hang it around the outside at turn one. Hamilton then executed what Nico Rosberg dubbed a ‘super smart’ move and ran him wide, culminating in Norris sliding off the track.
The McLaren driver bore no ill-will afterwards, acknowledging that his rival had done a ‘good job’. But Sam Bird called it a ‘dreadful’ mistake, and Rosberg argued that he’s guilty of making too many errors.
F1 insiders compare Lando Norris and Lewis Hamilton
According to BBC F1 reporter Andrew Benson, figures up and down the pitlane now regard Norris as part of the ‘elite group’ in F1. That group is made up of F1’s three world champions, and five-time Grand Prix winner Charles Leclerc.
Benson wrote: “Everyone in the paddock now recognises him as being part of the elite group also featuring Verstappen, Hamilton, Alonso and Leclerc.”
The omission of George Russell is noteworthy, and not just because he’s actually out-performing Hamilton this season. Sebastian Vettel has predicted he’ll be F1’s next new world champion.
Could Lando Norris join Red Bull?
If Norris is in the ‘elite group’, then it’s no surprise that he’s attracting interest from rival teams. There were already murmurs that Red Bull could target either the Briton or teammate Piastri if they lost Verstappen.
And Helmut Marko has now publicly admitted that the Bulls are keen, even telling his father that they could furnish him with a race-winning car. The problem is that he signed a new long-term deal with McLaren in the winter.
That was before Hamilton decided to join Ferrari, sending the market into overdrive. Some might argue that he signed too early on that basis.
But McLaren’s trajectory offers plenty of encouragement. They beat the Scuderia in Shanghai, a track where they expected to struggle, and Damon Hill has backed them to catch Red Bull before anyone else.
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