A perfect GP despite P3? Lando Norris explains what was missing at the Madrid circuit

With a near-perfect lap, Lando Norris secured the best starting position for the Spanish Grand Prix on the brand-new Madring circuit just outside Madrid. The Formula 1 champion had just one brief moment of panic in the final corner; he was able to navigate the remaining 21 corners exactly as he had planned, he explained after the qualifying session.

However, this did not mean he had the race on the hybrid circuit in the bag, even though the circuit at the IFEMA exhibition centre is considered to be difficult for overtaking. After all, the starting position was anything but straightforward, with Kimi Antonelli alongside him and superstars Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton lurking on the second row of the grid. Especially as the seven-time champion and the Red Bull Racing star started on soft tyres, whilst Norris and Antonelli began the 14th race of the season on medium tyres.

At the start, however, the defending champion managed to hold onto first place – until Antonelli cut the corner and had to give the position back. This happened to the championship leader twice. Norris then led the race until a virtual safety car period gave the field the opportunity to change tyres without losing much time. Whilst Norris missed the turn into the pits, all his direct rivals made it into the pit lane in time and thus gained an advantage. Norris followed their example, but by then the virtual safety car period had ended.

Norris fell back and was unable to fight his way back to the front. In the end, he had to settle for third place, crossing the finish line behind winner Antonelli and Verstappen. Afterwards, he said magnanimously: “My hands were tied; congratulations to Kimi and Max, they put in a good race.”

Norris is convinced: “We deserved the win”

Speaking about his own performance, the 26-year-old said: “Luck simply wasn’t on our side. I fought hard and tried to catch Max. But it’s difficult to overtake an opponent here. And he didn’t make any mistakes either. It was a tough race and, unfortunately, the way the race unfolded didn’t work in our favour.”

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Sighing, the current fourth-placed driver in the World Championship added: “I feel we deserved to take the win this time, but that’s just how it goes in motor racing sometimes. We’ll swallow this bitter pill and try again next time.”

When asked whether McLaren’s strong form made him confident about their chances of victory in the upcoming races, Norris replied cautiously: “It’s tough; something like that is never easy to achieve, and I’m working very hard to get the most out of the car. I put in a phenomenal lap on Saturday, which secured me pole position. And it certainly felt as though I’d delivered a perfect race. I just lacked that little bit of luck. But we’ll keep working hard. It’s very difficult to fight at the front. But we’ll keep going full throttle and try to secure more wins.”