Max Verstappen led the Miami Grand Prix by a wide margin in the first half, but Lando Norris’s strategically placed safety car gave the McLaren driver the lead in the closing laps.
At the 110th and final Formula 1 race, Lando Norris proved that Max Verstappen is not unbeatable by winning the Miami Grand Prix.
Yes, he was extremely fortunate to see the safety car emerge after Verstappen had stopped for new tires. But he made the most of it, outpacing the Red Bull in terms of speed in his upgraded McLaren.
Since Carlos Sainz won the Singapore Grand Prix last year, Verstappen has not lost a race in which he has placed third. Furthermore, Norris’ accomplishment will instill confidence in everyone on the grid—not just himself—by demonstrating that Red Bull is vulnerable to defeat in a straight fight.
Although Verstappen led the race fairly comfortably in the first half, McLaren was demonstrating strong pace. After the Dutchman, Oscar Piastri, Norris’s teammate, and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc pitted for new tires, Norris momentarily took the lead.
However, he managed to secure a cheap pit stop when home hero Logan Sargeant was defeated by Kevin Magnussen at half distance. The race was neutralized when the Williams got buried in the barrier, which needed the marshals’ assistance. This gave the Briton his opportunity.
The whole pack had to be released so that Norris could be the lead car before the race could resume, so he would have been concerned when Verstappen was picked up by the safety car rather than him. And that gave everyone trailing him the opportunity to illuminate their tires.
When the green flag was waved, though, he still had enough grip to hold Verstappen off. After confirming his lead, he didn’t look back, breaking the DRS barrier just in time to prevent the Red Bull from opening its rear wing.
Everyone felt that Verstappen’s approach might be inevitable due to past experiences. However, as the laps passed, the distance between them increased rather than decreased; Norris was in the zone, and the leader of the championship was becoming agitated.
Throughout the weekend, he hasn’t been satisfied with the grip his car’s rear end was providing. And he was back on the radio, griping about his car’s unsteadiness, realizing that he was going to lose badly.
Ten laps to go and Norris had extended his lead to five seconds. And after finishing each lap of the Miami circuit, he was getting more and more at ease. Then, he let out a cheer that was equal parts relief and joy when he realized his childhood dream of winning a Formula 1 race.
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