Lewis Hamilton (GBR) of Mercedes AMG F1 W15 and Lando Norris (GBR) of McLaren MCL38 started the Sprint race at the Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai, China on April 20, 2024. Norris, who had secured pole position during Friday’s Sprint Qualifying, expressed disappointment as he dropped from first to sixth place due to a few mistakes on his part.
Despite his exceptional performance in wet conditions during the Sprint Qualifying, Norris encountered difficulties right from the start of the Saturday Sprint race. A poor start led to Norris being alongside Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes as they approached Turn 1. Norris chose to take the outside line, which was dirtier, causing him to lose control and drop down to seventh place. He was able to regain one position when Fernando Alonso retired due to a puncture.
“I just lost it, there’s nothing else to say,” Norris admitted. “I was just trying to keep it on the outside, but with the poor condition of this tarmac, I went slightly wide. The tires were not at their optimal temperature, and I lost control. It’s a shame, but these things happen.”
Norris acknowledged that his mistake was frustrating, but he also believed that McLaren struggled for pace throughout the race, making it challenging to earn a significant number of points. He found himself stuck behind a group of cars, including Alonso, Carlos Sainz, Sergio Perez, and Charles Leclerc, all utilizing the Drag Reduction System (DRS). Despite their late-race battles, Norris was unable to make significant progress.
“I was just hanging on because of the DRS. Otherwise, I would have fallen back significantly,” Norris explained. “Our pace was quite poor, and I also sustained some damage towards the end of the race. It was a tough race, not what we were hoping for. Even if I had made fewer mistakes, I think we would have ended up in a similar position. Lewis managed to pull ahead quite a bit, but I believe Mercedes had a slight advantage over us today, although not by much. There were definitely more points available, but my mistakes cost me.”
When asked about the Turn 1 incident with Norris during the post-race press conference, Hamilton commented that Norris could have benefited from exercising more patience. “There’s a point when you push too far, and there’s no grip out there, and I think that’s what he eventually experienced,” Hamilton stated. “In that situation, he should have conceded and stayed behind me. He probably had the pace to overtake me because the McLaren is very fast, but I understand that he lost a lot of ground there. That’s just racing.”