Lando Norris claims his first victory of the 2026 F1 season

Lando Norris claimed his first victory of the 2026 F1 season at the Hungarian Grand Prix, converting McLaren’s strong weekend into a composed win after an early scrap with teammate Oscar Piastri.

The reigning world champion had been the benchmark through practice and qualifying, but a lively opening lap briefly put Piastri ahead before the race settled into a strategic battle that swung decisively back towards Norris.

Lando Norris’ race highlights

McLaren arrived in Budapest with a major upgrade package and immediately looked transformed. Norris delivered on Saturday with pole, but Piastri’s launch on the soft tyres was electric. He pounced when Norris ran slightly wide at Turn 2, grabbing track position on a circuit where overtaking is notoriously difficult.

For the first stint, Norris sat in Piastri’s mirrors, quicker but boxed in, asking over the radio whether he could pit first to break the stalemate. The team said no.

Piastri stopped just before half distance, rejoining ahead but vulnerable. Norris stayed out, extending his middle stint with strong pace despite older tyres.

The key moment came when Piastri, trying to clear lapped traffic, made minor contact with Williams’ Carlos Sainz at Turn 2. It cost him momentum and allowed Norris to chip away at the gap.

When Norris finally pitted on lap 40, he emerged ahead of Piastri and immediately controlled the race. Piastri looked set for second until a gearbox failure forced him to retire with 14 laps remaining, triggering a brief virtual safety car. From there, Norris cruised to McLaren’s first win of the season.

Verstappen held off Hamilton as Antonelli extends lead

Behind Norris, the fight for the podium became a story of missed opportunity for Ferrari and Lewis Hamilton.

Ferrari had expected to be strong at the Hungaroring and Hamilton originally qualified on the front row before being demoted three places for impeding Piastri in Q3. Starting fifth, he made a sharp getaway on new softs, jumping Charles Leclerc and immediately attacking Max Verstappen.

Hamilton hounded Verstappen throughout the first stint but couldn’t find a way past. Ferrari attempted the undercut, pitting him early. It initially worked, only for Verstappen to produce a blistering out‑lap and dive back ahead with a clean move down the inside at Turn 1. Hamilton was stuck once more.

A second stop on lap 30 put Hamilton back on the charge, effectively running third behind Norris and Piastri as Red Bull kept Verstappen out for a long middle stint. When Piastri retired, Hamilton was in position to take second and cut into Kimi Antonelli’s championship lead.

Ferrari’s strategy call proves costly

Ferrari rolled the dice under the late virtual safety car, pitting Hamilton again. The merge was tight: he rejoined just behind Antonelli, but was then handed a five‑second penalty for speeding in the pit lane. Unable to pass the Mercedes driver on track, Hamilton dropped to fifth once the penalty was applied.

Antonelli, delivered another composed drive. He held off Hamilton in the closing laps and banked third place, extending his championship advantage to 50 points over Hamilton and 59 over George Russell.

Verstappen finished second after a superb final stint, managing tyres and pace to keep Antonelli at arm’s length. Red Bull’s Isack Hadjar took sixth, while Russell recovered from a stall at the start to finish seventh.

F1 Top 10

1. Lando Norris, McLaren

2. Max Verstappen, Red Bull

3. Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes

4. Charles Leclerc, Ferrari

5. Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari

6. Isack Hadjar, Red Bull

7. George Russell, Mercedes

8. Liam Lawson, Racing Bulls

9. Nico Hulkenberg, Audi

10. Arvid Lindblad, Racing Bulls

How Lando Norris won with pace and patience

McLaren’s upgrade package delivered raw speed, but Norris still had to manage the race carefully. His ability to extend stints on older tyres proved decisive. While Piastri’s early aggression earned him track position, Norris’ consistency and tyre management allowed him to flip the strategy.

The minor contact between Piastri and Sainz was small but significant. It disrupted Piastri’s rhythm at a moment when he needed clean laps to protect the undercut. Norris’ lap‑40 stop put him ahead, and from there he was untouchable.

Ferrari left frustrated

Hamilton’s penalty seals a lost podium.

Ferrari’s day could have yielded far more. Hamilton’s early pace was strong and without the qualifying penalty he might have started ahead of Verstappen. The team’s decision to pit under the virtual safety car was bold but ultimately backfired. The speeding penalty compounded the error, leaving Hamilton fifth behind Leclerc.

Ferrari had the pace to fight for the win, but execution let them down.

Antonelli’s third place extends his lead heading into the summer break. Verstappen’s second keeps him in touch, while Hamilton’s penalty‑affected fifth leaves him with work to do. Russell’s recovery drive salvaged points but cost him ground.

Featured image via Marton Monus/ Reuters

By Faz Ali

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