Written by Alis Manriquez, Edited by Vyas Ponnuri
A week ago, Lando Norris completed 100 races full of memories in Formula One, having netted 12 podiums, one pole position, and 587 points in total, undoubtedly bringing a wide smile to the McLaren team.
The young Briton had done plenty of impeccable races for the papaya team all through. Although this weekend at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in Mexico was no exception, it was not enough to secure the podium for the young British driver, who despite suffering the consequences of a mistake during Q1, received the accolade of ‘Driver of the Day’ during the race, for his incredible strategic overtaking skills demonstrating his class and calibre.
As we mentioned before, Norris started 17th on the grid, due to his qualifying struggles. After a decent start, an early pit stop on lap12 could have been significant for the performance of the MCL60. Norris had already lost plenty of positions upon pitting, marking one of the most difficult parts of the race for the McLaren racer.
His teammate Oscar Piastri, after a brush with one of the AlphaTauri cars, failed to maintain a better pace than Lando Norris, so, by decision of the team, he left space for Lando to carry out the most notable comeback of the end of week. Lando Norris was applauded for impeccable overtakes and battles with companions George Russell and Daniel Ricciardo, on his way from 17th to 5th place.
“It has been fun, the battles have been entertaining and good overtaking” quipped a delighted Norris after the race, having achieved perhaps the most significant comeback of his career so far, and then being deservedly named Driver of the Day by the public.
Lando Norris did not achieve a victory, but he was essential to gain points for McLaren, and he achieved an incredible feat by gaining 12 positions in a race that did demonstrate team strength and hunger for victory, once again managing to demonstrate the quality of a young Formula One driver with a bright future in that sport.