Lando Norris from McLaren achieved a significant victory at the Dutch Grand Prix, ending Max Verstappen’s winning streak at his home circuit in Zandvoort and securing his second career win in Formula One. Verstappen, who is a three-time world champion for Red Bull, finished 22.896 seconds behind Norris after briefly leading the race. He was overtaken by Norris on the 18th lap out of 72, and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc completed the podium in third.
This marks the first occasion since the return of the race in 2021 that Verstappen has not been victorious at Zandvoort, extending his current losing streak to five races this season. With this result, Norris has reduced Verstappen’s lead in the championship standings to 70 points, while McLaren has narrowed the gap to Red Bull in the constructors’ standings to 30 points.
Norris expressed his excitement, stating, “It feels amazing. I wouldn’t say a perfect race because of lap one again, but it was still beautiful. The pace was strong, the car was unbelievable.” He also highlighted the satisfaction of successfully converting his pole position into a race win for the first time.
The race started with Norris having a slow launch off the line, allowing Verstappen to take an early lead. However, the McLaren demonstrated superior pace and DRS advantage, with Norris overtaking Verstappen on lap 17. In addition to his victory, Norris secured a bonus point for the fastest lap and was voted Driver of the Day.
Verstappen acknowledged the challenges of the race, stating, “You always hope to do better. We had a good start and tried everything we could, but it was clear we were not quick enough.”
Norris’s teammate, Oscar Piastri, finished fourth, followed by Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz in fifth and Red Bull’s Sergio Perez in sixth. The Mercedes duo of George Russell and Lewis Hamilton came in seventh and eighth, respectively, while Alpine’s Pierre Gasly placed ninth. Fernando Alonso of Aston Martin rounded out the points in tenth place.