Lando Norris believes “points were definitely possible” were it not for a loss of power that lead to his retirement from the 2019 German Grand Prix.
In what was his first experience of Formula 1 racing in the rain, Norris started from nineteenth after a poor qualifying and a grid penalty. The McLaren F1 Team rookie climbed as high as thirteenth in the early stages of the race despite “poor visibility” and the “very slippery” track surface.
But on lap twenty-five he suffered a loss of power from his Renault power unit and pulled off the circuit, posting his third retirement of the year as team-mate Carlos Sainz Jr. enjoyed a fight for the final podium position.
“The start was tricky because of poor
visibility and it was still very slippery even on Wets,” said Norris. “Everything
was going okay, making up some positions here and there when we didn’t box
under the first Safety Car, which in hindsight may have been the wrong decision.
“I made up a couple more places after boxing onto Inters and my pace was good
before I stopped for slicks, as it had dried just about enough. I got ahead of
the Toro Rosso immediately after that stop on the back straight. Things were
looking good but then the car lost power. It’s a shame as points were
definitely possible in what was a manic race.”
With his team-mate Sainz Jr.finishing fifth in Hockenheim, McLaren are now in a clear fourth in the constructor’s standings, twenty-eight points ahead of Scuderia Toro Rosso.
Norris himself has slipped to tenth in the drivers’ standings on twenty-two points, twenty-six points and three positions behind his more experienced team-mate.
