The young star overcomes his doubts in Florida and relegates the dominator Max Verstappen to second place. The entire paddock begrudges him the long-awaited triumph.
The first quarter of the mammoth season in Formula 1 has not only produced a new winning color, but also a new type of winner. Someone who everyone has been hoping for success for a long time.
The Brit Lando Norris had already come second eight times in his career, and he was often very close to the triumph he longed for. At the Miami Grand Prix on Monday night, he defeated the defending champion Max Verstappen, who as usual started from the top position, with his completely renovated McLaren racing car.
But it’s not just the personal aspect of this big surprise that is important. Rather, the 24-year-old’s success has a liberating effect on all of top motorsport. Because it means: Red Bull Racing can still be defeated on the track and the pursuers are getting closer.
For Ferrari team boss Fred Vasseur, it was “a good day for the entire Formula 1 that more teams can fight for the podium again.” A collective sigh of relief could be felt around the Hard Rock Stadium, at least for the moment.
Verstappen’s last defeat was due to a technical breakdown in his racing car; However, at the Miami International Autodrome he was defeated under regular conditions, although his Red Bull Honda struggled with the slippery track and the high temperatures.
Verstappen won the sprint race and started from pole position
Nevertheless, it was enough for victory in the sprint race and pole position on Saturday. Which is why the assumption that Lando Norris owed his debut victory solely to a safety car phase in the middle of the race, during which he was able to complete his remaining pit stop faster than the others, is wrong. Rather, the analysis of the lap times shows that Norris was a good tenth faster per lap than Verstappen, whom he had ultimately distanced by more than seven seconds.
In addition, Oscar Piastri in the second McLaren was also in the lead for the time being, and even after a crash with Carlos Sainz Jr. The Australian was able to set the fastest race lap in the Ferrari. “Lando simply flew past, he had so much surplus,” said the calm Max Verstappen, congratulating the winner, “he deserved this success for a long time. And it won’t be his last either.”
McLaren’s Italian technical director Andrea Stella has been working towards this turnaround for a year. When it comes to technical upgrades during the season, the traditional English team, which has only won once in the last twelve years, is now at the highest level.
Lando Norris received a wave of sympathy after his victory in Miami, and not just because he had dethroned Verstappen, who was still the dominant leader in the overall standings, in Florida. The 24-year-old is a tough racer who takes big risks, but he always shows respect for his opponents. He received a lot of applause for this attitude.
Instead of the now business-like Red Bull congratulations, initially only a siren-like screech could be heard from the McLaren cockpit, even the Ferrari fans in the stands were cheering, Andrea Stella placed the hand of an employee on his heart. Big, real feelings.
On the track, record champion Lewis Hamilton drew level with Norris on the run-off lap and immediately took both hands off the steering wheel to applaud Norris. “It reminds you of your own dreams,” reflected Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc, who came third. The Monegasse, Verstappen and Norris grew up together in karting, which makes for the relaxed approach but also uncompromising racing.
The race in Miami was the best of the year so far. Donald Trump, who was looking for donations at the Formula 1 spectacle in the Miami Gardens district, which was attended by 95,000 spectators and hordes of people from business and show business, urged the winner to congratulate him and claim: “I was your lucky charm today.”
Lando Norris owed his victory more to his perseverance. The talent trusted McLaren at a time when the racing team was still in the midfield and extended his contract early until the end of 2026: “I stayed because I believe in the team.”
He interprets the hate comments as motivation
The son of a multi-millionaire from Bristol is one of the guarantors of the future viability of Formula 1 among younger and especially female fan generations; he is always accompanied by his own social media team. Nevertheless, he maintains an ambivalent relationship with digital media. Although he likes to appear in public as a robust joker and occasionally as a party hero, he also shows his vulnerable side again and again.
He enjoyed reading the hate comments on the platforms that denigrated him as “Lando No-Wins” as part of self-therapy; they served as motivation for him. Nevertheless, he is happy about the liberation: “The fact that I was finally able to prove to these people that they were wrong puts an even bigger smile on my face.”
He has recently successfully combated the pessimism of purpose, which sometimes borders on a tendency to self-destruction, and a faster car has also contributed to the changed attitude.
He was simply tired of not being able to believe in his own success. Before flying to Miami, he had promised his sick grandmother that he would win his first race at some point. Now he says: “I knew my time would come.”
Now it happened much faster than expected. Winning is a matter of attitude – not just in racing cars.