Lando Norris says he is not proud that McLaren’s team orders drama at the Hungarian Grand Prix has overshadowed team-mate Oscar Piastri’s maiden Formula 1 victory.
The 24-year-old was pitted ahead of race leader Piastri during the final pit stops at the Hungaroring, placing him at the front of the field and Australian Piastri in second place.
After several radio messages between himself and his engineer Will Joseph, Norris finally obeyed the request to move aside with two laps remaining so Piastri could claim the win.
While the one-two finish was a moment to celebrate for McLaren, Norris says the intra-team row was something he has “not felt too proud about”.
He added: “Could it have been handled slightly differently from both a team side and from a personal side? Yes, absolutely. We wouldn’t be having this conversation now in some ways.”
Norris, who started on pole position but was overtaken by Piastri on the opening lap, said if the same situation happens again, the right thing to do will be to let his team-mate “pass straight away”.
“It’s such a stupid thing that I didn’t because we’re free to race,” he added. “I could just let him pass and still try to race and overtake him.
“It sounds so simple now, but it’s not something that went through my head at the time.”
Norris heads into this weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix second in the drivers’ championship, but some critics felt his decision to give up a winning opportunity – even if it would have caused tension within the team – was something other top drivers would not have contemplated.
“Whether people on the outside think, and come up with their own stories, of what happened and what I would’ve done and wouldn’t have done – I don’t mind about that,” he said.
“The fact we had a one-two and that was barely a headline after the race – nothing was really spoken about it from that side – that’s the bit I felt worst about.
“But it’s the things that I could have done; the fact that I clouded over Oscar’s race win, his first race win in F1, is something I’ve not felt too proud about.”
Round 14 in Belgium is the final race before F1’s mid-season summer break.
