Lando Norris beats Max Verstappen at Dutch Grand Prix to ignite title hopes

Lando Norris beat Max Verstappen in the Dutch driver’s backyard to ignite his hopes of winning the Formula One world championship.

Norris might have feared the worst after he allowed Verstappen to blast ahead of him following another poor start for the Briton here in Zandvoort.

But Norris silenced 105,000 orange-clad fans when he slipstreamed his way back past their hero on lap 18 of 72 before delivering an emphatic win to cross the line 22.8 seconds clear of Verstappen.

Norris’ triumph marked just the second of his career – arriving 112 days after his maiden victory in Miami – to reduce the championship deficit from 78 points to 70 with nine rounds remaining and 258 points still to play for.

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc finished third, one place ahead of McLaren driver Oscar Piastri. George Russell finished seventh, while Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton drove through the field from 14th to eighth.

An unwanted statistic lingered over Norris as he headed into Sunday’s race. Despite claiming three previous career poles, he had never led after the opening corner. And history repeated itself on the short blast to the Tarzan bend when Norris looked as though he was treading through treacle as Verstappen breezed clear.

Norris’ reaction time was the same as his rival – 0.28 seconds – but the second phase of his getaway cost the McLaren man dearly, and Norris was suddenly staring at the back of Verstappen’s Red Bull gearbox.

LANDO NORRIS WINS AT ZANDVOORT!!!