May 7, 2024 | By F1miamigp.com

Lando Norris Scores his first ever F-1 victory in Miami

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — A sellout crowd witnessed a landmark moment as McLaren’s Lando Norris triumphed at the Formula 1 Crypto.com Miami Grand Prix to record his first-ever Formula 1 victory at his 110th attempt. It was a brilliant result for the 24-year-old who took the checkered flag ahead of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari. After starting fifth on the grid, Norris benefitted from a mid-race Safety Car to jump into the lead of the race and comfortably pulled away from the field over the last two dozen laps.

“What a race! It’s been a long time coming but we’ve finally managed to do it and deliver for the McLaren team,” said the race winner. “I knew on Friday we had the pace and today we put together the perfect strategy and it paid off. This is for my team, I’m proud that we’ve put it all together. I’m finally on top and over the moon!”

In front of a sell-out crowd, the whole McLaren team wildly celebrated with the British driver after the flag and the popular racer was congratulated by a number of his fellow competitors for his maiden victory in F1. At the start, Max Verstappen led away from pole and was hotly pursued by Leclerc, the second McLaren of Oscar Piastri and Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari. The latter pair enjoyed a race-long duel, but Piastri’s race was effectively over when Sainz overtook the McLaren at Turn 17 on lap 39 damaging the front-wing of the McLaren as he did so — and forcing Piastri to pit for repairs.

It wasn’t entirely trouble free for Verstappen out front and on lap 21 he made a small mistake at the tight Turn 14 chicane and dislodged the bollard onto the race track. A brief Virtual Safety Car was then deployed to allow the marshals to remove the broken cone. While Verstappen and Leclerc pitted during this phase of the race, Norris ran longer and eventually inherited the lead. Then came the turning point in the race. On lap 29 the full Safety Car was deployed as Haas’ Kevin Magnussen had made contact with Logan Sargeant at Turn 3. The Fort Lauderdale man was sent spinning into the barriers and was the race’s only retirement.

Norris seized the opportunity to pit behind the Safety Car and with the field at a reduced pace he emerged back in the lead ahead of Verstappen and Leclerc. When racing resumed on lap 33, Norris defended from Verstappen at Turn 1 and with tyres that were six laps fresher, was quickly able to build a gap and commandingly went on to pull away over the remaining 24 laps. Sainz finished fourth ahead of Red Bull’s Sergio Perez, who narrowly fended off a charging Lewis Hamilton in his Mercedes.

“I want to congratulate Lando Norris on his first Formula 1 victory, as well as Zak Brown and the entire McLaren team on an incredible day in Miami,” said Tom Garfinkel, Managing Partner Formula 1 Crypto.com Miami Grand Prix, who presented Norris the winners’ trophy on the podium. “We are thrilled that the Miami Grand Prix played host to such an exciting race and delighted that the 275,000 fans in attendance this weekend were able to enjoy three days of exciting on-track action, as well as the lineup of great entertainment throughout the weekend. Thanks to Formula 1 and the FIA, we’re proud to have showcased the city of Miami to the world and there’s no doubt our third race in Miami Gardens has been our best yet.”

A sell-out crowd attended the Miami International Autodrome over the three days, up over 5,000 from last year and an increase of 45,000 from the inaugural event in 2022. It was once again a popular destination for famous figures from the sporting world and celebrities from the film and music industry. Miami Dolphins players Jalen Ramsey, Raheem Mostert, Bradley Chubb, Jaelan Phillips, Terron Armstead and Jevon Holland joined the Miami Heat’s Jimmy Butler, along with fellow NBA stars LeBron James and Kevin Durant. Tennis champions Serena and Venus Williams rubbed shoulders with singer-songwriters Zayn Malik, Shakira, Camila Cabello and electronic duo The Chainsmokers. Meanwhile the celebrity investors of the Alpine — NFL players Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce along with golfer Rory McIlroy — were also at today’s race supporting their team.

Aside from the main event, there was plenty of entertainment for fans to enjoy across the Campus, from the performances of DJs Cedric Gervais, John Summit and Kaskade at Hard Rock Beach Club to the post-race podium set from renowned DJ and producer Kaytranada. A star-studded weekend of entertainment also featured six-time Grammy Award winner Marc Anthony who delivered a special rendition of the U.S. National Anthem on the starting grid prior to the start of the race.

On the track there was action from the Porsche Carrera Cup North America, while rising star Abbi Pulling once again dominated the second all-female F1 ACADEMY series race of the weekend. In a repeat of yesterday’s race, she led all 13 laps from pole position in her Alpine-liveried Formula 4 car and was joined on the podium by McLaren’s Bianca Bustamante and Mercedes’ Doriane Pin. Finally, last night a special Bonhams|Car auction featured 23 super cars and the star of the show was the 2011 Ferrari SP30 Berlinetta which fetched over $2 million.

F1miamigp.com