Formula 1 witnessed McLaren returning to the top of the podium at the Hungarian Grand Prix, and even Lando Norris did not expect the reaction to come so soon. The Brit acknowledged that the team’s recovery surpassed his own expectations after a season start marked by difficulties.
This Hungaroring victory was Norris’s and McLaren’s first win in a GP during the 2026 season. The result came after the introduction of a wide package of updates to the MCL40, including a new floor, changes to the car’s front and rear sections, and revised brake ducts, enabling the driver to win by more than fifteen seconds ahead of Max Verstappen of Red Bull Racing, who finished P2.
The start of the season, however, was far from what the current champions in both drivers and constructors had anticipated. The team faced reliability problems with failures in the MGU-K on both cars in Shanghai, in addition to Oscar Piastri’s crash on the reconnaissance lap in Melbourne. After two rounds, McLaren had only eighteen points and was eighty behind Mercedes.
According to Norris, the team chose not to build expectations during that period and focused its efforts on developing the car: “One thing I learned is not to create expectations about the future and to work only in the present. That’s how we did everything as a team. That’s why we were back on top in Hungary, working hard both individually and as a group,” he said.
A estratégia da McLaren foi manter o MCL40 praticamente inalterado nas primeiras corridas para entender melhor o comportamento do carro e sua integração com a unidade de potência, antes de introduzir mudanças mais profundas. A equipe identificou que o principal ponto fraco estava nas curvas de alta velocidade e direcionou o desenvolvimento para corrigir essa característica, tendo o GP da Hungria como o primeiro grande objetivo desse novo caminho.
Even with the substantial result, Norris believes there is still work ahead: “I’m optimistic for the future and I think we can win more races, but we have strong rivals and there are still circuits where I’m not confident, because the car isn’t yet at the necessary level in some areas. I had confidence that we could win a race, but that happened a little sooner than I imagined. I also trust that we will improve the areas that are not yet good enough,” he added.
