Verstappen beats Norris to take Spanish hat-trick

BARCELONA :Max Verstappen won the Spanish Formula One Grand Prix for the third year in a row on Sunday while McLaren's pole-sitter Lando Norris rued a poor start that he said had cost him victory.

The hurt was evident after the Briton finished a mere 2.2 seconds behind Red Bull's triple world champion after 66 laps around Barcelona's Circuit de Catalunya on a hot and sunny afternoon.

"I should have won," said the disappointed driver, now Verstappen's closest challenger in a title 'battle' that still looks one-sided despite rivals catching up.

"Not could have. Should have won. I got a bad start. Simple as that. The car was incredible. We were the quickest and I lost it at the beginning. A lot of positives this weekend. One negative and that kind of ruined everything."

Well behind the top two, seven-times world champion Lewis Hamilton finished third for his first podium appearance of the season while Mercedes team mate George Russell was overtaken and ended up fourth.

Verstappen extended his championship lead to a hefty 69 points over Norris, who also banked a bonus point for the fastest lap.

Ferrari's Charles Leclerc was fifth, after taking the chequered flag just 0.3 behind Russell and following a wheel-banging tussle on lap four with team mate Carlos Sainz, who finished sixth in front of his home crowd.

Leclerc said the clash damaged his front wing at a time when he was trying to manage the tyres and he would be having words with the Spaniard, who is making way for Hamilton at the end of the season.

"He is motivated to do something spectacular but I was probably not the right person to do that with," said the Monegasque.

Sainz also took issue with Hamilton after being forced wide by the Briton, but stewards saw no need for