After 2 years, 7 months, and 9 days, Lando Norris finally got his redemption for the 2021 Russian GP, which could have been his maiden F1 win. The McLaren driver was naturally grinning from ear to ear after winning the 2024 Miami GP. After enjoying the champagne and confetti on the podium, Norris confessed in the post-race press conference that he would party to the fullest on Sunday night.
Norris expressed how he would have liked to win his maiden race in Silverstone, his home Grand Prix. However, on this, Max Verstappen jumped in to say, “It’s definitely better here [Miami] mate to go out”, hinting how the night party in Miami would be much better than in Silverstone.
Norris promised how it was going to be a “good night” of partying. Now, it was natural that Verstappen would join Norris to celebrate the latter breaking his duck of wins. The duo reportedly went to a club and a Twitter (now X), video shows them dancing in the club.
max clubbing in miami with lando!!! the all black fit pic.twitter.com/lYR6BLqsHn
— nini (@SCUDERIAFEMBOY) May 6, 2024
The 24-year-old had been getting a lot of criticism and trolling for not winning a Grand Prix, unlike his peers. So, his Miami victory helped him to shut that narrative down, once and for all.
Norris has been living with the regret of not capitalizing on his advantageous position to win in Sochi back in 2021. The Briton had been the star of that weekend, taking pole in rainy conditions by over half a second. In the Grand Prix too, Norris was leading comfortably before a late shower spoilt his party.
His decision of not pitting for intermediate tires at the right time cost him his maiden win back in Russia three years ago. Cut to May 2024, it is understandable why Norris changed his flight plans, given celebrating his maiden win was warranted after such a long wait.
How Lando Norris did not falter to seize his moment in Miami
Going into the Miami Grand Prix, many expected Max Verstappen to continue his winning run. While there were murmurs of Ferrari being competitive and challenging the Dutchman, McLaren was just looking to hone their new upgrade package.
However, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri were in the thick of things at the top as the race got underway. While Piastri suffered after pitting just before the safety car, Norris was lucky to get the benefit of a free pit stop under the safety car.
Now, at this stage, many still thought that Verstappen would eventually catch up to Norris and overtake him for the lead. However, with the benefit of fresher hard tires and a highly upgraded MCL38, the McLaren driver kept extending his advantage at the front.
Verstappen himself was happy to see his friend take the win away from him, given he knew how much the Briton was yearning for it. Eventually, the three-time champion settled for a P2 finish, seven seconds behind Norris taking the chequered flag.
The Dutchman mentioned that he was quite impressed to see McLaren’s pace on the hard tires in the last stint of the race. Provided the Woking team did not experience a track-specific performance in Miami, Verstappen may actually have competition for wins in the rest of the season.
