McLaren used team orders to help Lando Norris win the Sprint race ahead of Oscar Piastri, while a late virtual safety car disrupted Max Verstappen’s chances of overtaking Piastri.
This victory has cut Verstappen’s lead in the championship to 45 points.
Lando Norris took the win after Oscar Piastri let him pass. The McLaren teammates started in the top two positions for the 24-lap Sprint, ahead of Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen, while Fernando Alonso, Lance Stroll, and Zhou Guanyu began from the pit lane.
Norris had a strong start, but Piastri defended well and led into Turn 1 ahead of Norris, Leclerc, Verstappen, Carlos Sainz, and George Russell. Oliver Bearman and Lewis Hamilton had a tough time, falling to 12th and 14th places.
With their special rear wing working well, the McLarens quickly pulled ahead of Leclerc, who was busy holding off Verstappen. Gianpiero Lambiase warned Verstappen, saying, “Take your time Max, you know the game.”
As Norris trailed Piastri, he expressed his confusion to McLaren, saying, “I’m not sure what I’m doing here. I thought we spoke about this.”
A small mistake from Norris let Leclerc close in, bringing Verstappen along as they pulled away from Sainz.
Further back, Pierre Gasly was challenging Russell for sixth place, while Bearman was right behind Nico Hulkenberg, and Sergio Perez was trying to find his way into the points among the Haas drivers and Liam Lawson. Bearman passed Hulkenberg for ninth, and Perez also managed to get through.
On lap 10, Piastri received a message from McLaren instructing him not to let Norris pass but to “give Lando DRS.” McLaren urged Piastri to increase his speed while keeping his teammate close.
As Verstappen pressured Leclerc for third place, Perez passed Bearman and then took the final points position from Lawson. Lawson quickly fought back, regaining eighth place as Perez struggled with his tires.
By lap 16, McLaren informed Norris, “With the gap to Leclerc at the moment we’re happy to hold the positions until the last lap.” Two laps later, Piastri was told that if Norris tried to attack, he shouldn’t resist.
On the next lap, Verstappen overtook Leclerc for third place, closing in on the McLarens. The gap to Norris was just 1.4 seconds, and Verstappen encouraged his team with, “Let’s chase them down!”
While Verstappen chased Norris, Russell pulled ahead of Gasly. Perez passed Lawson, and Hamilton moved up to 12th place after overtaking Franco Colapinto, who was struggling. Hamilton then passed Bearman as Hulkenberg, Bearman’s teammate, retired due to an exhaust problem.
With Hulkenberg stopped on the track and yellow flags out, McLaren quickly decided for Piastri to let Norris pass in case of a possible Safety Car. Piastri slowed down, Norris took the lead, and shortly after, the virtual safety car (VSC) was deployed.
On lap 24, the final lap, the VSC ended, and Verstappen tried to overtake Piastri, but the Aussie held his ground. Meanwhile, Norris raced to victory, with Piastri finishing second for a McLaren 1-2 ahead of Verstappen.
Leclerc, Sainz, Russell, Gasly, and Perez rounded out the top eight for points. Verstappen has been noted for a possible VSC rule violation!
