Lando Norris dreamed of winning in Monaco as a child, and that dream came true on Sunday. In the streets of Monte Carlo, the Briton drove to victory, even though he was afraid that the victory would slip through his fingers in the final phase.
That was mainly due to a different strategy by Max Verstappen. The Dutchman only made his second and final mandatory pit stop in the last lap, thus giving the lead back to Norris.
According to Norris, Verstappen, who finished fourth, was betting on a red flag. In that case, the Red Bull driver would have received a ‘free’ pit stop and could have changed tires without consequences. “But luckily that didn’t happen,” Norris said at the press conference.
“I completely agree with Max and Red Bull that they tried it this way. They had nothing to lose and would have finished fourth otherwise. If a red flag had come, they would most likely have won.”
Norris started from pole position but almost lost his leading position in the first corner after locking his wheels. After that, he was under pressure from Charles Leclerc throughout the race, although he did not get into major problems.
“It has been a long, tough race,” Norris continued. “We were able to push the whole race and we won in Monaco. A fantastic weekend, from pole position to today. This is what we dream of. This is what I dreamed of as a child.”
‘It can always be better, but this result is perfect’
Norris got stuck behind Verstappen in the final phase of the race, who waited a long time to make his second mandatory pit stop. “I felt like I had the race well under control, but Max slowed the pace down a bit and I had to manage it well. Keep distance, and push when necessary.”
Norris kept his cool, took his second win of the season and his sixth win of his career. In the World Championship standings, he is only three points behind his leading teammate Oscar Piastri. “It can always be better, but this result is perfect. It gives me a huge boost towards the rest of the season.”
Next week there will be racing again when the Grand Prix of Spain is on the program near Barcelona.