Norris tried to keep his head down after Piastri’s first-corner collision with Verstappen

Clinching his fourth victory of his career, McLaren driver Lando Norris explained that he tried to keep his head down after the first-corner collision between his team-mate Oscar Piastri and four-time F1 champion Max Verstappen.

Lando Norris led off the line from start to finish, keeping out of trouble to win for the fourth time this season, beating Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz.

However, his team-mate Oscar Piastri was involved in a first-corner collision with Max Verstappen which saw both drivers spin out and drop down the order. By contrast, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, who started from the back of the field, had a sensational first lap, climbing up the order to P8 and end the season with a third place.

Despite Ferrari’s double podium finish, it was enough for McLaren to clinch their first Constructors’ title since the 1998 title, beating the Scuderia by only 14 points in the end.

Reflecting on his race, Norris said that while he was happy to take his fourth win of the season, he was even more delighted with McLaren achievement, with the Woking-based outfit having clinched their first teams’ title in 26 years.

“I mean, I’m very, very happy. Just as I’m sure everyone in the team is. Today was a very special day for all of us. It was ours to lose today and I’m sure at certain moments people thought that it was not far away from being lost. You know, two Ferraris up there and Charles doing a great job to get back to the podium.

“Oscar was super unlucky. He got taken out in Turn 1. So for a minute, my heart was like, ‘oh God, it’s not looking as likely’. But if I just kept my head down and kept focused, I knew I could deliver and do what I got to do. That’s that, but the bigger picture of us winning a championship for the first time in 26 years, you wouldn’t have thought that when you say the name McLaren.

“It feels wrong to say that they’ve not won a championship in 25 years (sic). But for me to be part of that, for Oscar to be part of it, is something we’re incredibly proud of. And delivering that for the team has put the biggest smile as possible on everyone’s face.

“This is the biggest reward you can give back to everyone who designs the car, builds the car, gets the partners. Everyone has played such a big part, so just proud. Proud is my biggest thing. Of course, I’m happy I finished the season this way, but I’m way more happy for the team than I am for myself.

Although he failed to keep his hopes in the battle for the drivers’ title alive, he still ended the year in P2. Norris explained that his position in the drivers’ standings meant that he believes in himself “a bit more” than before.

“I don’t believe in a lot of things, but I think the one thing I’ve learned this year is probably to believe in myself a bit more. I’ve certainly not come out on top as often as I would have liked in certain moments as a driver, you know, especially in my fights against Max. As much as it hurts sometimes, I’m probably happy about it now that I’m going to go into next season knowing that I can fight.

“And I know myself, and I know more and better than anyone what I need to improve on, where I’m not strong enough, where I’m strong enough. You know, I’m always open for criticism, things like that. But I’m the one who knows better than the others, right? So not in an arrogant way or a selfish way, but I know that I have to improve in a lot of areas and certain things.

“And I feel like I’ve already done that quite a lot in the last three, four, five races. I feel like I’ve delivered some very strong results. But on the whole, next year is hopefully a year where I can go in and decide before the first race we’re going to fight for a championship. We’ve not ever thought of that. We’ve not even had the feeling of it from a team perspective and also for me as a driver.

“So hopefully the next year is that year. And we obviously have a lot of work to do. And Ferrari are going to be pushing a lot. But that’s another year. For now, I’m just going to celebrate with my team tonight and celebrate what they deserve.

Asked about how he felt when his team-mate Oscar Piastri was taken out of the picture on the opening lap, Norris said that he was nervous and he became even more so when he realised that Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc moved up to P8 from the back of the grid after a sensational first lap.

“I was watching the TV screens and I saw Charles was P8 after lap one, so I was a little bit nervous! But I knew I just had to focus on myself, put my head down, and Carlos was never far away. I think the biggest I got the gap was to like 4.2 seconds in the first stint, and that’s not a very nice gap in my opinion.

“It’s a bit too close to my comfort. So it was still a tricky race, and I’m sure there was probably a lot more nervous people on the pit wall and in the garage, knowing what was at stake and things, and I’ve got the adrenaline of the car and focused on that. For them, they’re just sitting and watching the screens, and they have a lot more time to think about what can go wrong and all of that.

“But, yeah, a shame for Oscar. We really wanted to have a one-two today and let McLaren be on top today as a team in a race, but also for a championship, you know, and I felt quite bad for him in the beginning. It wasn’t his fault. But he’s had a great year, so we’ll all celebrate together. I certainly am. And we’ll have some fun,” Norris concluded.