McLaren Saves Lando Norris From Fatal British GP Penalty With Masterstroke During Chaotic Max Verstappen Crash Sequence

Fan-favorite Lando Norris suffered a terrible blow to his Austrian GP dreams at the Red Bull Ring today. Despite starting the race from #2, Norris walked away with zero points to his name. And it all happened because of his tussle with friend-cum-competitor Max Verstappen towards the latter part of the 71-lap session. While chasing after Max, Norris got so into the competition that he violated the track limits multiple times. And at the upcoming Silverstone GP, the Briton might have to reap the results of his on-track errors today.

Lando Norris had attained the second position on the starting grid with his brilliant performance at the Austrian Qualifying. His MCL38 almost matched Max Verstappen’s RB20’s speed as the F1 pundits claimed Norris to be the Dutchman’s biggest rival this season. However, too much ambition led to the 24-year-old trying to take on frontrunner Max Verstappen right from the moment the race began. But it was during lap 64 that Lando came within a hair’s breadth from Verstappen. And in the next moment, the two cars had contact at Turn 3.

When the light had gone out to begin the Austrian GP, Max Verstappen had gotten off to a great start from pole. The Dutch lion maintained his lead on his medium tires for the whole first stint before going into the pits. As the Red Bull mechanics fitted a pair of hards onto Max’s RB20, the pitstop lasted longer than it should have. This was all that Lando Norris needed to close the gap to Max.

During the second stint once Verstappen was out of the pits, Norris repeatedly attacked the race leader. However, while making these moves, the McLaren driver did not follow the track limits several times. This resulted in the stewards imposing a 5-second penalty on him. But during lap 64, the McLaren and the Red Bull of Lando and Max came into contact.

Ultimately, the papaya army racer had to retire from the race without serving his time penalty. However, the McLaren mechanics at the pits have saved the day since they waited for 5s extra before touching Lando Norris‘ car to ensure he does not get a penalty in Silverstone. However, the FIA’s latest document reveals it already knows about McLaren’s genius plan.

FIA does not fall for McLaren’s idea to save Lando Norris

While the McLaren men tried to save Lando Norris from an upcoming penalty in the British GP, they failed the task. Even though they waited for 5 seconds before touching Lando’s car when he came into the pits after the contact with Verstappen, FIA has seen through the trick. Thus, they did not count that stunt while considering whether Norris served the 5s penalty he got for violating track limits. In their document after the Austrian GP, they even mentioned this detail. However, another lucky incident still saved the Briton from suffering a penalty at the upcoming weekend in Silverstone.

According to the FIA, Lando Norris raced for enough laps before his contact with Max Verstappen caused him to retire. Thus, his Austrian GP run would be classified. The FIA has added Norris’ 5s penalty to his timings at the race in Red Bull Ring. Hence, the rule-making body of F1 now considers that the McLaren racer has already served his penalty for violating track limits in Austria. As a result, there is no penalty coming Norris’ way when he walks into his home race next Sunday.

Lando’s crash with Max in Austria might serve as a wake-up call to the papaya army racer. Even though he showed clinical precision in carrying out his maneuvers at the Red Bull Ring, he still suffered a DNF as he attacked Verstappen repeatedly for the race lead. Do you think the 24-year-old will take the learnings from this Sunday and apply them in Silverstone to get a win there? Let us know in the comments below.