‘I freaking love it’: Lando Norris proud to silence the critics with first F1 win at Miami Grand Prix

Lando Norris has hailed his maiden Formula 1 win at the Miami Grand Prix as a moment of immense pride and one he insisted would finally silence the critics and doubters who question his talent.

The McLaren driver took his debut victory in a thrilling finale at the Miami International Autodrome. Norris comfortably beat three-time world champion Max Verstappen into second place and took the flag for the first time after 110 race starts since his debut in Australia in 2019.

Norris has since come close to victory, not least at the 2021 Russian GP where he was denied a likely win only by the intervention of rain late in the race. But the 24-year-old has faced detractors and abuse online, with his abilities and whether he could beat Verstappen in a straight fight questioned, including social media posts referring to him as “Lando No-wins” . Norris responded definitively in Miami, insisting he had found the feedback a nice incentive to push him to bigger things.

“I never lost confidence, I never believed in what I could do,” Norris said. “I’m so happy to put that to bed and prove a lot of these people wrong because as much as I love seeing it and I go on Instagram and I love all the comments from people abusing me, I love it , it makes me smile more than anything, especially ‘Lando No-wins’.

“To finally prove those people wrong and prove it to people who didn’t think I could do it, it put an even bigger smile on my face today. That’s why I thank them all.”

Norris benefited from a free pit stop under the safety car, which left him in the lead over Red Bull’s Verstappen while on newer tires. From then on, he not only beat Verstappen, but also showed nerves of steel to maintain and extend his lead over the Dutchman to finish with a comfortable lead of 7.6 seconds at the flag.

Such was Verstappen’s dominance over the past two years that at the post-race press conference he inadvertently sat in the middle seat reserved for the winner and laughed when reminded that for once he had not been the winner. The defending champion then paid tribute to Norris, with whom he is good friends.

“I am very happy to have been beaten by Lando today,” said Verstappen. “He definitely deserved it. There he was only kilometers faster at the end. It’s great, winning your first race is always quite emotional. It takes you back to all the days you spent working on Formula 1, and then you dream of being on the podium, but on the top step.”

Norris had 24 laps to maintain his lead, which he did with absolute control, setting a string of fastest laps to comfortably await Verstappen at the flag for a memorable and long-awaited victory. He paid tribute to the support he had received from his father and mother and explained why he dedicated the victory to his grandmother.

“My parents have been so supportive, they’re the ones who have been with you from the beginning,” Norris said. “They allowed everything to happen. They are the ones who got me into racing, supported me and enabled me to go to Formula 1, achieve my dream and do what I have loved since I was a child.

‘My grandmother, because she hasn’t been doing well lately. I saw her last week and I told her I was going to win a race. I didn’t say when, I just said I was going to win a race. I didn’t expect it to happen so quickly, so I’m very happy that I was able to do it so quickly.”

An emotional Norris was joyfully welcomed by his team as he stepped out of his car after securing McLaren their first win since the Italian GP at Monza in 2021, with the series of upgrades to the car proving to have made real improvements.

It was all the more impressive because they had expected to struggle in Miami with the preponderance of slow corners and not with the strengths of their car. This was truly an against-all-odds win and suggests they are competing as the second-best team on the grid, perhaps overtaking Ferrari, while Norris has cemented his place among the top drivers.

“A lot of people doubted that I could go out and win races and perform under the pressure of leading the race, especially with Max behind you, but this year I was really more confident than ever,” said Norris. “I’m doing well. I am fast and do things exactly the way I want. I have improved many of my weaknesses and all that hard work has paid off.