F1 News
This is how Hamilton would've reacted to being in Norris' position
Lewis Hamilton has explained how he would've reacted in Lando Norris' position in last weekend's Hungarian Grand Prix. George Russell also felt sympathy for Norris and explained what he believed made the situation harder.
Norris and Piastri shared the front row and it was the Australian who took the lead at the first corner. He seemingly had the race under control until McLaren opted to pit the trailing car (Norris) first. The Brit, therefore, undercut Piastri. He was told to give the place back and after some firm messages over the team radio, Norris eventually obliged in the closing stages of the race.
This led to a big debate, with some questioning whether Norris had the killer mentality seen by the likes of Max Verstappen, Lewis Hamilton and Michael Schumacher. The direct net result for Norris was losing seven points on Max Verstappen in the World Championship. The current gap sits at 76 points with 11 race weekends remaining.
What would Hamilton have done in Norris' position?
Hamilton, a former McLaren driver himself, explained what he would've done. "It’s not my call to make. If I was in that situation, I would do what my team asked me to do, as hard as it is. It's not about you. You're representing and working with 2,000 people. Ultimately, I think he made the right decision," Hamilton told GPblog and others in Belgium
Hamilton's current teammate Russell believes he knows the reason why it would've been harder for Norris to give up a race victory. "When you're in the car, there's so many emotions at play, you're very narrow-minded and often thinking mainly about yourself first," Russell said.
"Norris, and myself as well, don't have that many victories to our names so you can't take it for granted that there'll be another one right around the corner. But as Lewis said, it's not about us, it's about the team we're representing. Knowing Lando, if I was watching that race live, I would think he was always going to give the place back. But I think often a driver wants to prove their point to a certain degree. For me, it would have never been a doubt that he would go against it," Russell added.
Norris has just one Grand Prix victory to his name. That came at the 2024 Miami Grand Prix in May. Russell doubled his win tally to two by taking advantage of the crash between Max Verstappen and Norris in Austria.