McLaren's Lando Norris stormed to victory at the Dutch Grand Prix on Aug 25, a superb drive consigning home favourite Max Verstappen to his first-ever loss in front of his Orange Army of fans.
The British driver claimed his second career chequered flag after winning in Miami in May, closing Verstappen's lead over him in the world championship to 70 points, with the Dutchman coming second.
Despite raucous encouragement from a packed Zandvoort circuit, Verstappen could not extract enough from his Red Bull to compete with a recently upgraded McLaren that is beginning to look like the car to beat in Formula One.
"It feels amazing... The pace was very strong and the car was unbelievable today," said Norris, who also secured a point for the fastest lap.
The start was critical. Questions have been asked of the starting ability of Norris, who has thrice this season failed to convert pole position into a first-lap lead the line, allowing Verstappen to power around the outside to huge cheers from the crowd, who saw their man take a 0.9-second advantage into the second lap.
This story is from the August 26, 2024 edition of The Straits Times.
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This story is from the August 26, 2024 edition of The Straits Times.
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