Lando Norris delivered a tongue-in-cheek statement at McLaren’s strategists for putting him on Hard tyres for the second stint of the 2023 British Grand Prix, joking they are still beginners in some areas.
Norris was debating over the radio with the McLaren pit wall demanding they give him Soft tyres for the second stint of the race at Silverstone on Sunday, as he was concerned from having to defend from Lewis Hamilton who was waiting for the Safety Car to end to pounce on the #4 McLaren, his W14 having grippy Soft tyres bolted to it.
However, Norris was masterful in his defense from the seven-time Formula 1 Champion who in the end ran out of tyres and had to settle for third.
In parc ferme, Norris was asked about the decision to use the Hard tyres, he quipped: “They put me on hard tyres I don’t know why. They are still beginners in something!
“It was an amazing fight with Lewis, I made a few too many mistakes maybe,” he added. “I did what I could. I brought the fight to Max for as long as possible. It’s a long lonely race when you’re in the middle but it’s amazing.”
Taking the Hard tyres was the right call
Later, in McLaren’s post-race brief, Norris said: “First of all, I just want to say a big thanks to the whole team: they’ve done an amazing job and none of this would be possible without the hard work that they’ve been putting in.
“It was an amazing fight with Lewis, to hold him off, and I brought the fight to Max for as long as possible. It’s a long, lonely race when you’re just in the middle but it’s amazing to be on the podium at my home race.
“The whole in-lap I was just trying to wave to everyone. A big thanks to all the British fans out here supporting all of me and the whole team. We should have have P2 and P3.
“Oscar did an amazing job all weekend, and he should have been P3 today without the Safety Car, so a shame, he deserved it. Great result at Silverstone, we’ll keep pushing forward from here as a team,” Norris concluded, crediting teammate Oscar Piastri who missed out on his first ever F1 podium.
McLaren CEO Zak Brown defended the team’s decision to put Norris on Hard tyres, he told Sky Sports F1: “The nice thing is you know Lewis will fight you hard but fair, so at least you feel like you have a driver that will be sensible.
“We knew with the hards if we could get past the first couple of laps, then he broke DRS I would say that was a big moment,” the American insisted.