McLaren driver Lando Norris won the Formula 1 sprint race on Saturday at the Brazilian Grand Prix, closing the gap to championship leader Max Verstappen.
Red Bull’s Verstappen is also being investigated for a possible rule violation related to the virtual safety car.
With four races and one more sprint left in the season, Norris is now 45 points behind Verstappen.
Norris started in second place, and late in the 24-lap sprint, his teammate Oscar Piastri let him pass.
Verstappen finished in third place, while Charles Leclerc from Ferrari, who is also in the title race, came in fourth.
Carlos Sainz Jr. from Ferrari took fifth, followed by Mercedes’ George Russell, Alpine’s Pierre Gasly, and Red Bull’s Sergio Perez.
Norris seemed frustrated with Piastri’s pace during much of the race. “I am not sure what I am doing here, mate,” he said over the team radio. “I thought we spoke about this.”
Later, Norris praised the teamwork at McLaren.
“I am not proud about it but we worked well as a team together so I thank Oscar,” Norris said. “Oscar deserved (a win) but we did what we had to do.”
Piastri didn’t give much detail on the decision made by McLaren. “A great day for the team and a lot of points. We learned a lot for the race tomorrow,” he said.
