Lando Norris found himself frustratingly stuck behind Max Verstappen for an extended spell during the Miami Grand Prix.
McLaren had by far the most dominant car and claimed an emphatic one-two finish, including a 35-second gap to George Russell in third.
Norris looked to have a slight edge over teammate Oscar Piastri for the first time this season, which was an encouraging sign.
The Brit now trails by 16 points in the drivers’ championship, after his colleague claimed a third consecutive Formula 1 victory in the Sunshine State.
Norris has been told to ‘realise’ he can win after a recent drop-off in form has seen him drop his head a little.
There were signs that after a shaky start to the Miami Grand Prix, despite being bumped off the track by a rival, Norris worked at fixing a ‘really broken’ issue which could yet hamper his title charge.
READ MORE: Lando Norris pinpoints the exact moment he realised Max Verstappen was beatable after all
Andrea Stella thinks Lando Norris should have avoided first lap incident with Max Verstappen
After getting a solid launch off the line, Norris found himself challenging Max Verstappen into turn one in Miami, forcing a lock-up from the reigning champion.
Then, a slide would force him into the path of Norris, who fell to sixth after taking avoiding action. The stewards deemed that no further investigation was required after the incident.
McLaren boss Andrea Stella took time to reflect on the matter and told Sky Sports F1 that he believes the Brit could have saved his attack for later in the race.
“The first lap, with hindsight, it would have [been] potentially wiser for Lando to lift and accept he would have gained the lead later on in the race because the car was fast enough but that’s with the benefit of hindsight,” he said.
The fight continued later in the Grand Prix, and at one stage Norris overtook Verstappen before handing the place back. Another call, which, although tight, Stella believes was right.
“In terms of giving back the position, I think that was the right thing to do because Lando, in our judgement, was outside the track limits and you have to give back the track position,” Stella continued.
“That’s a little bit of bad luck, but you have to behave and behave fairly. That could have been a risk of a penalty so it was the right thing to do.”
READ MORE: McLaren admit Lando Norris could get ‘upset’ with team orders stance after losing championship lead to Oscar Piastri
Why Lando Norris was right to take Max Verstappen on at the Miami Grand Prix
With a lot of the talk coming into the weekend being about Norris’ title charge already slipping away, he had to provide some sort of answer.
Not only was his pace strong, but he proved that he can get past Verstappen. Without the Dutchman’s kick of oversteer, Norris may have taken the lead on lap one and sailed into the distance.
Sadly, things just don’t seem to be falling his way currently, but he did show that he is still up to the task of getting past a driver who can be a wall at times.
Norris was told he ‘must’ show Piastri two things in Miami, and one of them – showing that he still has the confidence to win, was definitely proven.
