A seismic victory for Norris, McLaren and F1: Analysis of the Miami Grand Prix, brought to you by Bahrain International Circuit

A seismic victory for Norris, McLaren and F1: Analysis of the Miami Grand Prix, brought to you by Bahrain International Circuit

If you ever wondered what the prospect of a hugely popular British driver’s first win in the sport can do to normally measured and sane individuals, look back at your social media feed at the time of the last ten laps of Sunday’s Miami Grand Prix. It was pandemonium. Grown men hiding behind the sofa type of behavior. Normally impartial commentators of the sport were crossing fingers and maintaining a silence through fear of inflicting the commentator’s curse. For many, it brought back memories of Sochi in 2021. It was rain that day that ruined the chance of victory, but there was no such bad luck or interference this time. In fact, the driver and his race engineer appeared to be the only calm individuals in the whole state of Florida. Global superstar celebrities and fans, both on the ground in Miami and watching from afar, were all holding their breath and waiting for a moment that some had claimed would never come. And then it did, as Lando Norris crossed the line for his first ever victory in the topflight. The celebrations were predictably wild and the plaudits received for the driver and the team were a well-deserved tribute to what we may well look back on as a landmark race in F1’s history.

To get an understanding of just how popular this victory was, you could just look at the reaction of every other driver after the race. Each were keen to offer their personal congratulations on a victory that many believed should have come much earlier in his career, given his incredible talent. This was a personal victory which settled any demons that Lando Norris may have had. It was a victory for McLaren that cemented their progress as a genuine challenger at the front. It may also be looked back on as a turning point for the sport as front-running teams seek to end the era of Red Bull dominance.

In the heat of the emotion surrounding such a massive win, it may be easy to be accused of exaggeration and over-excitement for one of the most popular victories in recent years. Not this one. For the supremely talented Lando Norris, the historic McLaren and maybe even for the entire sport itself, this win was simply seismic.

For the driver, it put to bed a few statics and records that he would have been eager to put to bed.  Since his F1 debut in 2019, he has raced 110 times. In that time, he achieved more podiums without a victory than any other driver in the sport. To trolls on social media, he became known as “Lando No-Wins”. In the aftermath of his victory, he was keen to make the point that he had proven those detractors wrong. He is on a long-term contract with McLaren and has been dedicated to the team at often difficult times. Other drivers of his level of talent perhaps would have been less patient. But he has been rewarded with the first of what many believe will be many victories to come.