Current FIA European Formula 3 Championship front-runner Lando Norris took part in his first official Formula 1 test on Wednesday for the McLaren Honda Formula 1 Team, and ended up second fastest to Sebastian Vettel.
The British driver took over the car from Stoffel Vandoorne, who had finished second himself on Tuesday, and completed 91 laps of the Hungaroring, with his best time of 1:17.385s just 0.261 seconds off Vettel’s pace.
Norris admitted it was a ‘fantastic opportunity’ to get behind the wheel of a 2017 Formula 1 car for the first time, and he was happy to get up to speed relatively quickly, with the Briton hoping the experience is the first of many going forward.
“It was a great experience driving a 2017 McLaren-Honda,” admitted Norris. “It was a fantastic opportunity for me to learn and further develop as a driver. It was good to drive at a track I’d been to before and it was pleasing to get up to speed with the current McLaren-Honda.
“I was also present earlier in the week and it was interesting to watch the team work from the sidelines while I picked up valuable information from Stoffel [Vandoorne] who was behind the wheel on those days.
“I managed to get through all the tests that the team asked me to complete, and everything went well. Getting used to the car was a bit of a challenge at first but by the end of the day I felt very comfortable.
“I got a lot of laps under my belt and I really enjoyed the experience. Big thanks to the team for giving me this opportunity. Hopefully it will be the first of many!”
