Lando Norris resumed his 2024 campaign with a bang at the Dutch GP. As the clock ticked down in Q3 at Zandvoort, Norris laid down a dominant marker to grab pole position by over three and a half tenths of a second. Meanwhile, the home hero, Max Verstappen could not do much about it. This dominant pace advantage shocked McLaren CEO, Zak Brown.
Per Sky Sports F1’s live blog, Brown said after qualifying, “That was a monster lap from Lando [Norris]. I was not expecting a margin like that. It could have been a front-row lockout but I will take first and third.”
Norris, Verstappen, and Oscar Piastri were quite close throughout Q1 and Q2 with less than 0.1 seconds separating them at times. However, the #4 driver pulled clear of the two by 0.356 seconds. Norris was the only driver to break the 70-second mark with a pole time of 1:09:673.
A mighty lap from Lando Norris #F1 #DutchGP pic.twitter.com/s62tfL9WTq
— Formula 1 (@F1) August 24, 2024
Now, it will be interesting to watch whether McLaren’s advantage on single-lap pace also translates to their race pace or not. Considering the medium tires run by Norris on Friday, Will Buxton suggested that their pace seems ominous.
Even Brown stated, “Our race pace has been good, we just need a good, clean start and some good strategy. We certainly have the pace and the drivers to win.”
While the McLaren CEO is confident about Norris converting the pole to a win, the Briton also needs to get a good start on the opening lap. Norris has been developing an uncanny trend of losing out on his pole advantage before the end of the first lap. And with Verstappen starting on the front row beside him, the 24-year-old will once again be wary of the same.
Norris expects Verstappen to give him a “tough” fight at Zandvoort
After getting his fourth career pole position, Norris was cautiously confident about his chances to double his win tally at Zandvoort on Sunday. He was also happy with his pole position lap and credited the entire team to enable him for consistently delivering good laps.
McLaren have brought upgrades to the Dutch GP weekend and they seem to be working well. The MCL38 is looking a step ahead of the RB20 on ultimate pace now and Norris would want to capitalize on the same in the Grand Prix.
However, he knows that Verstappen has been superb at his home track since its return to the calendar in 2021. The Briton said, “I’m excited for tomorrow. I’m sure it will be tough. Max has been quick all weekend. I know we got him today but he’s still second and will put up a good fight, especially at his home race.”
Norris and Verstappen will be starting on the front row together for the first time since the Austrian GP — where they had their chaotic collision in the final laps of the race. On top of that, Norris’ tendency to lose out on the first lap may also lead Verstappen to go more aggressive and stamp his authority from the outset.
