Lando Norris was pleased to bring home the first points of the season for the McLaren F1 Team during Sunday’s Australian Grand Prix, with the Briton securing sixth place at Albert Park.
Two troubled weekends in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia had seen Norris end both races down in seventeenth, and after Qualifying only thirteenth on Saturday, hopes were not that high that a first top ten finish of the season would be forthcoming.
However, Norris stayed out of trouble and was able to show good pace to take home sixth place, although he did benefit from the late race double retirement from the BWT Alpine F1 Team and the five-second time penalty for Carlos Sainz Jr. to score eight points in Melbourne.
However, unlike those drivers, Norris kept his nose clean and was able to get points on the board, which he believes will be good for the confidence of the team both trackside and back at their Woking factory.
“A very good race. We had good pace throughout, stayed out of trouble with no mistakes,” said Norris. “The team did a very good job. I think the pace today was stronger than our qualifying pace yesterday, so things came together nicely. Just a well-executed race.
“I’m happy with all of that, and it’s the first points for us this season. It’s nice to get on the board and it’s a good end to the first few races before we have a bit of a break and then head into Baku and the next batch of races.
“I’m happy, so a big thanks to the whole team and everyone back at the factory for all the hard work as usual and we’ll keep pushing.”
“I’m so happy to get my first points in Melbourne” – Oscar Piastri
Team-mate Oscar Piastri also scored his first points of the season with an eighth-place finish, with the Australian delighted to be able to bring home a first career top ten finish in front of his home fans.
Piastri admitted he had not expected to finish inside the top ten prior to the race, particularly after finding himself well done the grid and outside the top fifteen at the start.
But he was able to avoid the chaos and bring home the car in one piece to score his first four points of his career, and he was thankful to the fans for their support as he raced in front of his home supporters for the first time.
“P8, I didn’t expect that at the start of the day!” said Piastri. “I’ll definitely take it. Obviously a crazy, crazy race but we stayed in there when it mattered.
“I’m so happy to get my first points in Melbourne and want to thank all of the home fans and papaya fans for all their support this week. Double points for the team is a great result and thank you to everyone who got us there.”
