McLaren Dominates Hungarian Grand Prix: Norris Beats Piastri in a Strategic Race
BUDAPEST, Hungary – McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown, upon leaving his team’s motorhome, encountered a crowd of journalists eager for statements from team principal Andrea Stella. Just an hour earlier, the fight for victory between McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri had nearly culminated in a collision on the penultimate lap of the Hungarian Grand Prix, raising tension both in the pit wall and in the stands.Following the usual dynamic at McLaren, Brown provided the headline, while Stella offered a more detailed analysis of Norris’ victory over Piastri, highlighting McLaren’s commitment to allowing its drivers to compete freely. In such a close contest, strategy was key. Norris’ victory was based on a one-stop strategy, considered unconventional, while Piastri, seemingly at a disadvantage, opted for a two-stop strategy that initially looked like the most favorable.“Just in case anyone didn’t notice,” Brown commented to reporters, “… it was a great race!”
Zak Brown
For Norris, the emotions were different. After a bad start, his chances of victory seemed slim, but as his alternative strategy unfolded, confidence grew.“You know, when you lose a race by such a small margin, it’s painful, but it was certainly entertaining from the outside,” Piastri declared. “It was entertaining from the inside too, a pretty fun race, but obviously, when you’re on the losing side of that battle, it’s a bit difficult.”
Oscar Piastri
The battle between the McLaren drivers was further complicated by the presence of Charles Leclerc, who started from pole position. The Ferrari driver led at the first corner and maintained the pace to keep Piastri at bay, while Norris fell to fifth place on the first lap before recovering to fourth place on lap 3. McLaren had considered the possibility of a single stop before the race, but favored a two-stop strategy. By initiating pit stops on lap 18 and committing to two stops for Piastri, there was the possibility that fresh tires would offer an advantage to overtake Leclerc and take the lead. “Our base strategy today was a two-stop strategy,” explained Stella. “We didn’t necessarily believe that a one-stop was possible, so with Oscar we tried a good two-stop strategy, trying to overtake Leclerc at the first stop. Then we tried to extend [the duration of the second stint] with the second stop to have a performance difference from the tires to be able to overtake Leclerc, and this worked.” Piastri mentioned that he was offered a one-stop strategy in the first stint, but given his battles with Leclerc, he doubted that this would help his situation.“I didn’t really think it would work for most of that second stint,” Norris said. “But with every lap, I gained more confidence that I would be closer. So yeah, it was definitely rewarding.”
Lando Norris
