Lando Norris spoke about how Charles Leclerc would have taken the ‘risk’ to go ahead of Max Verstappen for the lead in the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
McLaren had an amazing weekend in Imola with their British prodigy Norris on the podium. However, in a post-race interview the young driver talked about a mistake, his Ferrari rival, Leclerc made during the race.
Third-placed Lando Norris of McLaren F1 celebrates on the podium with sparkling wine during the F1 Grand Prix of Emilia Romagna at Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari on April 18, 2021, in Imola, Italy.
During Lap 34, the leading Red Bull (33) went off the circuit while entering into Rivazza and thus the Ferrari (16) should have pushed for P1.
The young Englishman further asserted, “I think if I was in P2, I would have gone for it because you have a chance at winning then. It’s a risk [that’s] worth it.”
Lando Norris and expectations from the McLaren driver
The 21-year-old again proved his worth as one of the best drivers in Formula One, finishing at P3 in the Pirelli Gran Premio Del Made In Italy E Dell’emilia Romagna 2021. However, the young driver struggled on Friday and Saturday sessions in Imola.
The young Brit started the race with P7 on the grid behind his teammate Daniel Ricciardo. But Norris could have gotten the P2 in Q3 but his time got deleted because of extending the track limits.
Lando Norris of Great Britain driving the (4) McLaren F1 Team MCL35M Mercedes during qualifying ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Emilia Romagna at Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari on April 17, 2021, in Imola, Italy. (Photo by Dan Istitene – Formula 1/Formula 1 via Getty Images)
However, this didn’t affect the McLaren prodigy, because as soon as the race started Norris overtook the drivers ahead and got P3. But before he could have challenged Leclerc for P2, the race was discontinued because of a massive accident.
As soon as the race resumed, the young Brit witnessed Leclerc missing an excellent opportunity to snatch P1 from Max. Further, the McLaren driver enquired the extent of exploiting the track limit, as the Dutch driver didn’t receive any penalty for going past the white kerb line, whereas Norris had to pay the price for a similar incident during the final Imola qualifying session.
During Lap 35, McLaren (4) snatched the P3 from Leclerc and before he could have gone to take the lead of the race, Norris was at a constant threat from Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton. However, Norris eventually lost P2 to the Silver Arrow Knight and couldn’t push for retaking the position because of not having the young tires.
Lando had to settle down with the third podium position. However, he was voted as the Best Driver of the Day for his outstanding performance at Imola.
"The fans voted you driver of the day!"
"I didn't think I had any fans, but thanks!" 😭
Your #F1DriverOfTheDay… @LandoNorris! #ImolaGP 🇮🇹 #F1 pic.twitter.com/jalDG1BlCM
— Formula 1 (@F1) April 18, 2021
We will again witness Lando Norris behind the wheels of McLaren MCL35M in the upcoming race at the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve on Sunday, May 2. We can expect the young driver to attain the top spot on the Portugal podium. Nevertheless, Hamilton and Verstappen would be a threat to the 22-year-old in the upcoming third race.
