Lando Norris has suggested he “didn’t necessarily overdo it” after avoiding the wall twice with none damage during a dominant Singapore Grand Prix.
The McLaren driver pulled off a decisive manoeuvre to beat Formula 1 Championship rival Max Verstappen by greater than 20 seconds across the Marina Bay Circuit, and took the lead for the primary time in his profession at the tip of the primary lap from pole position.
However, through the race, after locking his front wing and heading straight into Turn 14, he hit the barrier on the exit after which almost repeated the incident that forced George Russell to retire from last yr's race on the entry to Turn 10 towards the tip of the race.
Norris ran wide to overtake Williams driver Franco Colapinto within the closing stages of the race, but had a big margin for error on the 16/17 chicane.
“It was an incredible race – a few too many close calls,” Norris said. “I had just a few little moments in the center, but I believed every part was well-controlled.
“The car was mega, so I could push. We were flying the whole race, and at the end I could just relax. So it was cool. It's still tough. I'm a little out of breath, but it was a lot of fun.”
Lando Norris, McLaren MCL38
Photo: Alastair Staley / Motorsport Images
Asked if he needed to push himself so hard that he made mistakes, given his dominance on the pitch, Norris replied: “It’s not that you just necessarily overdo it, sometimes you may just loosen up a bit of bit.
“Maybe a little bit of this and that. I don't know what it is, it's difficult. It was still difficult, easy to lock up the tires, like I did. So I kept pushing, I didn't want to have one second advantage, I wanted to have as big an advantage as possible.”
On the problem of the race – the primary Singapore GP and not using a safety automotive – given the new and humid conditions, he explained: “It was similar to Qatar last year, but I wasn't really taking it easy. I could have gone a lot slower, so I was a bit dazed at the moment.”
The result means Norris has once more closed in on Verstappen within the points standings and when asked in regards to the closing gap, the three-time world champion stressed: “That could change in a short time.
“So we just have to keep trying, at some point try to turn it around a little bit, not always ending up behind, but we'll see how it goes.”
