Lando Norris had an eventful weekend back home in Great Britain. McLaren’s star player may have lost the podium this week, but made a lot of progress with this race. Finishing at an adequate P4 at Silverstone wasn’t enough for Lando. He was happy with the result- it meant more points for the team, but saving the hiccup he faced, he would have had the chance to battle it out for the podium.

The long pit stop cost him the chance to challenge the Mercs to the end of the race. However, that Lando knew the car had the potential to battle the Silver Arrows says a lot about the progress McLaren has made. Not only does it show his belief in the machine but also in himself. Lando has proven to be a driver to look out for this season.

In the post-race show, Lando talks about the pace of the car. The restart allowed Lando to make it into the top three, and he did. From the lights out, he smoothly overtook Bottas and maintained that lead. He says that this holds testament to the fact that the Orange cars have a lot more power and pace to them.

“Our pace was probably better than what we were expecting, especially in the first half of the race.”

Memorable aftermath for Lando Norris

The 21-year-old may not have gotten the ending he wanted at Silverstone, but the points he gathered pushed him to another level. This is Norris’ 9th top-five finish out of the ten this season. Accumulating these points, it pushed him to P3 on the driver’s leaderboard- with a Mercedes and RedBull below him.

Fate played a cruel trick on Norris, because had the pit stop been smoother, he would have got “that little bit more” he is thirsting for. He adds, ‘I didn’t get the chance to be ahead and defend for as long as possible. It would have been nice to fight for it and have that opportunity, but fourth and fifth for us as a team is still a good result.”

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To add to his achievements, the Brit is the only driver in McLaren’s history to have achieved as many F1 point finishes. Ross Brawn praised the potential future champion. “That Lando was disappointed with fourth shows how far he and his McLaren team have come of late and his performance is a nice reflection on the progress he has made.” 

He offered consolation to the driver saying, “He will have been frustrated to lose third on the road to a slow pit stop, but when he’s slept on it, he will surely reflect on another job well done.”

It was a job well done indeed for Norris and also his team. McLaren’s P4 and P5 in Silverstone reveal the progress the team is making in the garages. By 2022, we may see McLaren getting out of the midfield and into the championship race.

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