Lando Norris Ferrari has been flagged as a bigger threat than Red Bull after its McLaren team took the top of the Formula One constructors’ standings for the first time in more than a decade.
The remarkable achievement of Oscar Piastri and Norris’ excellent fourth-place finish with the fastest lap, starting 15th on the grid, in Azerbaijan on Sunday pushed McLaren to 20 points ahead of champions Red Bull.
Ferrari, which suffered a crash Carlos Sainz with Sergio Perezfrom Red Bull. On the penultimate lap while fighting for third place, he was second with the highest points, with Charles Leclerc second from the post.
The Italian team, whose last constructors’ title was in 2008, is third in the overall standings and is now just 31 points behind the reigning champions.
“Before these three races – Monza, Baku and Singapore – we knew that our main opponents were the Ferraris,” said Norris, second overall and now 59 points behind Max Verstappen with seven races remaining. .
“They have been our competition lately. Arlos and Charles have performed well putting us under pressure,” he said. Norris.
Leclerc won at Monza, after McLaren took the front row of the grid, and then secured pole position in Baku for the fourth consecutive year. Singapore is the next Grand Prix, where Sainz won last year, with Norris second.
“They are performing well and seems to be our closest competition at the moment. So from a constructors’ point of view. We are probably more worried about Ferrari than Red Bull,” the Briton said on Sky Sports television.
The return of McLaren to lead a championship he last won in 1998 marked another important milestone in a surprising season. Red Bull has led the standings for 55 races, dating back to early 2022.
Last year, Red Bull won a record 21 of 22 races and McLaren, who last won the constructors’ title in 1998, finished fourth, 558 points behind.
Four teams (McLaren, Red Bull, Ferrari and Mercedes) have won at least three races each this season, something that hasn’t happened since 1977.
There have also been seven different race winners, the most since 2012.
The last time McLaren was in charge was after Kevin Magnussen and Jenson ButtoThey finished second and third in the 2014 season opener in Melbourne, Australia, their only podium finishes that year.
McLaren scored more points than anyone in 2007, but was left without them after a spy scandal. The only team title in the 21st century remains with the drivers of Lewis Hamilton in 2008.
“The team is giving us a car that can go out and win,” Norris said. “Imagine the first race of the year, we were behind Mercedes. And now we are ahead of them. We have done an incredible job to catch up with Red Bull. To overtake them in points and speed and be the best team in F1 is something we should be proud of,” said the pilot.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Rose Herman and I work as an author for Today Times Live. My expertise lies in writing about sports, a passion of mine that has been with me since childhood. As part of my job, I provide comprehensive coverage on everything from football to tennis to golf.
