Lando Norris secured his second straight Formula 1 win at the Dutch Grand Prix, underlining McLaren’s resurgent form in the second half of the season. The Brit came out on top at Zandvoort, beating championship leader Kimi Antonelli in the Mercedes, with George Russell third in the sister Silver Arrow. Lewis Hamilton crossed the line fourth in the Ferrari.
In the standings, Norris now trails Antonelli by 83 points—but the Papaya team is now on even terms with the Silver Arrows, as Antonelli admitted: “We need to find something as a team; McLaren has made good steps.” Norris stayed grounded after the victory: “Two wins in a row, it’s a good time right now, but we need to keep a cool head and look straight ahead.”
The race was marred by Max Verstappen’s early exit: the ailing local hero lost control in the notorious banked final corner on the opening lap and wrecked his Red Bull in the barriers—on his last home appearance at Zandvoort. The “Orange Army” had roared him on before the start, hoping for a farewell win. Verstappen had vowed: “We will try to add one more memory today.” It ended as a memory of a different kind.
A red flag halted the race for about 30 minutes. At the restart, Antonelli on mediums briefly led Norris. On lap 19, Russell reclaimed third after a slow stop by Oscar Piastri. When Norris and Antonelli switched to hards on lap 22, the decisive tyre gamble unfolded: Antonelli pitted early on lap 41, Norris responded seven laps later—and then stormed past the leader on fresh rubber.
A late soft-tyre change by Antonelli under the Virtual Safety Car dropped him behind Russell, who let him through. Nico Hülkenberg delivered the German highlight of the day: the Emmerich native dodged a potential collision with Audi teammate Gabriel Bortoleto in the opening chaos and finished eighth—his best result of the season and a second consecutive points finish after Hungary.
