Lando Norris warns 'there’s no stopping' McLaren as F1 title race heats up

McLaren

Lando Norris warns 'there’s no stopping' McLaren as F1 title race heats up

Norris delivers brash warning to F1 rivals

By Jeen Grievink.

Wednesday 29 July 2026 10:57

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Lando Norris was over the moon with the performance and sheer pace of his McLaren on Sunday after winning his first grand prix as a champion in Hungary.

The reigning drivers' title holder secured his first win of the season at the Hungaroring, bringing home the Hungarian Grand Prix victory trophy after also putting on an impressive show to clinch pole position the previous day.

Despite admitting that his car was tricky to handle at times, the 26-year-old was especially impressed by the blistering pace of the MCL-40, as he explained when speaking to media after the race.

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Though Norris began the 70-lap grand prix from pole, his start was far from smooth and he lost the lead at Turn 2 to team-mate Oscar Piastri before eventually clawing his way back into contention.

A clever overcut and an eventful battle with the Australian driver helped him reclaim first place, but an incident involving Piastri and Carlos Sainz prior to a gearbox failure for Norris' team-mate dashed the team's hopes of a one-two finish.

Max Verstappen and championship leader Kimi Antonelli ultimately completed the podium. While the win was sweet, Norris did acknowledge there were improvements to be made in the car’s handling.

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When asked what thrilled him most after his 12th grand prix win, Norris quickly pointed to the raw speed of his car, saying: "What pleases me the most? Just the fact we were so quick, the fact the car was, of course, very strong today.

"I was just very happy with a lot of things. The car was still horrible to drive at times, but quick, and I’d rather have a horrible but quick car than anything else.

"Just the pace, the pace I had the whole race, even behind Oscar at the beginning."

Even after an early mistake that cost him the lead, the driver didn’t lose his cool, adding: "Of course, it wasn’t my finest Turn 2, but after that, seeing what my pace was like and I was just better in every sense, in terms of degradation and pace.

"I was convinced I could still win the race, even after that, whether I would box or force him to box and I would go long, get fresh tyres and come back through.

"So, I was convinced I could win the race today, and we did."

The defending champion also expressed his disappointment for his team-mate on the opposite side of the garage. Piastri had looked set for a strong result until technical issues intervened.

"Of course, it was unfortunate for him and unlucky, because I think we could have had a one-two," admitted Norris, though ultimately, the Brit's satisfaction with his performance at the Hungaroring prevailed.

"We were just on another level today, and I felt in a very good flow of things," he confidently told media before concluding: "When the car’s good and when I’m in a good flow, there’s no stopping."

Thanks to the 25 points that came with his win on Sunday, Norris is now just 10 points behind four-placed Charles Leclerc and 91 points shy of the total that championship leader Antonelli has managed to rack up.

All eyes on McLaren and Norris when the campaign resumes in Zandvoort next month to see if the confidence and pace can prevail.

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Jeen Grievink - Brand Owner

Met meer dan tien jaar ervaring in journalistiek, marketing en SEO is Jeen de strategische motor achter GPFans NL. Sinds zijn start bij Realtimes in 2016 groeide hij van redacteur naar Brand Owner en hoofdredacteur van het platform. In zijn huidige rol stuurt hij de redactie aan en bepaalt hij de strategische koers van GPFans binnen de internationale Formule 1-media.

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F1 McLaren Lando Norris 2026 regulations Hungarian Grand Prix Hungaroring