Lando Norris won the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort on Sunday, cutting Kimi Antonelli's championship lead to 83 points after a race that saw home favourite Max Verstappen crash out on the opening lap. Norris, driving for McLaren, took the chequered flag after a bold late move on Antonelli, with George Russell finishing third in the final race at the circuit before it leaves the Formula One calendar.
Norris stages late fightback to seal victory
Norris trailed Antonelli for most of the race but a strategic gamble on tyre timing paid off. He stayed out longer before his final pit stop, coming in on lap 48, seven laps later than Antonelli. On fresher rubber, Norris quickly closed the gap and overtook the Mercedes driver with a decisive move at turn one with 15 laps remaining.
“The fight is still on, let’s keep going!” Norris said as he took the flag for his second consecutive victory. The win reduces Antonelli's lead, though Norris still trails by 83 points. He acknowledged the scale of the task but pointed to his own history of comebacks, noting he did not finish in the Netherlands last year but went on to win his first title. Max Verstappen, the defending champion, previously overcame a 104-point deficit after Zandvoort to close within two points of Norris by season's end.
Verstappen crashes out on opening lap
The race was halted for 40 minutes after Verstappen crashed heavily on the opening lap. The Red Bull driver dipped a wheel onto the white line on the inside of the final corner, which was still damp from rain, lost the rear, and spun across the track into the barriers. His car was left in pieces, but he emerged unscathed.
“I got caught out. It was still quite wet in that corner and as soon as I saw the dry patch coming, I was like: ‘Now you can accelerate’, but clearly that didn’t work. So probably it was still a bit too early,” Verstappen said. The crash led to a restart, during which Antonelli passed Russell for second and then Norris for the lead.
McLaren's upgrade package proves effective
Norris's victory marks a turnaround for McLaren, which struggled with an off-pace car in the first half of the season. The team introduced a new upgrade package at Zandvoort, and Norris showed strong form throughout the weekend, bouncing back from a disappointing sprint race to take pole and then the win.
Russell said he believes McLaren are now the team to beat, and Antonelli agreed they have the fastest car. Lewis Hamilton finished fourth after angry exchanges with his Ferrari team over a strategy he felt cost him a podium chance. The race was held before a sell-out crowd at the circuit in the dunes by the North Sea, which hosted its final Grand Prix.
Norris's win brings him closer to Antonelli in the standings, and with several races remaining, the championship battle remains open.
