Lando Norris secured a thrilling victory at the Hungarian Grand Prix, edging out his teammate Oscar Piastri in a nail-biting final lap. The race, held at the Hungaroring on August 6, 2023, saw Norris execute a successful one-stop strategy, cutting Piastri’s championship lead to just nine points with ten races remaining in the season.
Norris completed 39 of the 70 laps on a single set of hard tyres, while Piastri made two stops, ultimately closing a 12-second gap to just 0.6 seconds by the finish line. The closing moments of the race featured a tense chase and a near-collision on the penultimate lap, showcasing the intensity of the competition.
George Russell of Mercedes finished a distant third, crossing the line 20 seconds behind the leading duo. “I’m dead. I’m dead. It was tough,” Norris remarked after the race. He started in third place, alongside Piastri who began in second. After being squeezed at the start, Norris briefly dropped to fifth but quickly regained his position.
The strategy that led to Norris’s victory was not initially planned. “We weren’t really planning on the one-stop but after the first lap it was kind of our only option to get back into things,” he explained. What began as a two-stop race quickly shifted as Norris adapted to the circumstances, stating, “I didn’t think it would get us the win, I thought it would get us maybe into second.”
This win marks Norris’s fifth victory of the season and his third in the last four races, making it a significant achievement for McLaren, who celebrated their seventh one-two finish in just 14 races.
Race Strategies and Key Performances
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc started from an unexpected pole position but could not maintain his lead. After an impressive first 40 laps, his two-stop strategy faltered during the final stint, allowing Piastri to overtake him. Leclerc also received a five-second penalty for erratic driving while defending against Russell. “There was a problem on the chassis. There was an issue on that side so we will look into it for it to not happen again,” he stated post-race.
In addition to Norris’s and Piastri’s performances, Fernando Alonso finished fifth for Aston Martin, marking the team’s best result of the year. He was followed closely by rookie driver Gabriel Bortoleto of Sauber, who achieved his best finish to date in sixth place. Bortoleto’s performance also contributed to Sauber’s sixth consecutive race scoring points.
Lance Stroll, another Aston Martin driver, finished seventh, helping the team move up to sixth in the constructors’ standings, just ahead of Sauber. Liam Lawson of Racing Bulls took eighth place, while reigning world champion Max Verstappen finished ninth. Rounding out the top ten was Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli, who ended a scoring drought for the team.
Norris’s victory not only tightened the championship race but also underscored the unpredictability of Formula One racing. The competition remains fierce, with Piastri now holding a slim lead over Norris and Russell trailing closely behind.
The race concluded with Lewis Hamilton, who started in twelfth position, finishing in the same place. The seven-time world champion experienced a challenging race, being lapped by the leaders and expressing frustration over his performance. He had previously described his qualifying efforts as “useless” and acknowledged the need for improvement.
As the teams prepare for the upcoming races, the excitement continues to build for the remainder of the season, with the championship battle intensifying between Norris, Piastri, and Russell.
