F1 Expert Explains Why 7 Point Sacrifice by Lando Norris Is Essential for Him to Win the Title

Lando Norris gave up on a win in Hungary to help his teammate Oscar Piastri finish P1. The gap to Max Verstappen came down to 76 points but had Norris not let Piastri through on the penultimate lap of the race, would have been 69. However, this seven-point sacrifice could end up helping Norris more in the long run.

Norris admitted that he thought of all the times Piastri helped him in the past, which is why he didn’t want to deny the Melbourne-born driver his first race win. Scott Mitchell-Malm said on the F1: Chequered Flag podcast,

“I firmly believe that if the championship is going to be decided by such a fine margin for those 7 points to have mattered, Lando is going to need Piastri and McLaren more times before the end of the year. He could easily get back more than 7 points by Piastri ceding a team order.” 

honestly, this is all on MCLAREN, not Norris and Piastri, they should have put them in such an awkward and unfair situation #HungarianGP pic.twitter.com/YQTZPrXiFx

— Mimi ♡ (@KOKOMlYA) July 21, 2024

Norris overtook Piastri in Hungary because of a McLaren undercut, but the former leading the Grand Prix was never planned. His race engineer Will Joseph pleaded with him on the radio, to let Piastri by and he only did so on the penultimate lap. It led to a nervy finish, and although Piastri won, the focus remained on Norris’ decision to slow down for the Aussie.

However, a championship cannot be won or lost in a race. With there being still more than half a season to go, Norris knows that preventing a deserved Piastri win could have bitten it back when it mattered more.

Joseph kept reiterating the same thing to Norris throughout the race, and he folded eventually. Journalist Will Buxton, however, felt Norris should not have done so. 

Buxton asks McLaren to start acting like World Champions 

McLaren last won a World Championship in 2008, and the current employees in Woking don’t have that Title-winning experience. Everything needs to be in order and harmony to win a Championship, but the 2024 Hungarian GP was the complete opposite of that.

Buxton asks McLaren to start behaving like a contender. He said,

“They’re a team at the moment that is failing to appreciate the position they are in. They’re still making panicked, crazy decisions, or indecisions on the pit wall.” 

Buxton wants McLaren to be proactive and assertive, instead of leaving decision-making to its drivers. The papaya team will now look to regroup in the summer break and try to get things in order, after the Hungarian GP mess.