Lando Norris wins Monaco Grand Prix to reduce Oscar Piastri’s F1 standings lead
MONACO (AP) — Lando Norris cruised to victory at the Monaco Grand Prix on Sunday to cut teammate Oscar Piastri’s Formula 1 standings lead.
Starting on pole position, Norris locked up a wheel into the first corner but still managed to hold off last year’s winner, Charles Leclerc of Ferrari.
“It feels amazing,” Norris said. “This is what I did dream of when I was a kid.”
Norris took his first Grand Prix win since the season-opening Australian Grand Prix — though he did win a sprint race in Miami this month — and reduced Piastri’s lead from 13 points to three.
Leclerc was second after closing in on Norris late in the race — though he wasn’t able to attempt a pass — while Piastri was third and defending champion Max Verstappen fourth.
Verstappen was the leader on track until the second-to-last lap but only because he had yet to make his mandatory second pit stop under a rule change introduced in an attempt to spice up the Monaco Grand Prix, where overtaking is almost impossible.
Despite predictions it could allow some teams and drivers to spring a surprise, the rule had little overall impact on the results, except for a few cases of teams seemingly slowing down one car to benefit a teammate.
“We lost the race yesterday,” was Leclerc’s verdict, referring to the importance of qualifying on pole in Monaco, his home race.
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AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing
