Lando Norris‘ Monaco Grand Prix victory required “cold blood”, according to McLaren team principal Andrea Stella, who believes the win is a sign of things to come.
Norris took his second victory of the season in Monaco on Sunday, closing the gap in the drivers’ standings to teammate Oscar Piastri to just three points.
The 25-year-old secured the win from pole position, and despite a new regulation for this year’s Monaco Grand Prix that complicated strategy by making it mandatory for drivers to change tyres twice, held off the threat from Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari in second place.
“We know there was going to be a lot going around his head, a lot of communication with the engineers, the strategists, etc. and he was just calm, cool throughout,” Stella said of Norris.
“I think Lando kept the high standards, the quality of execution and the lucidity that he has had throughout the weekend. He was faster from Lap 1 in practice and he kept building from Lap 1 in practice to capitalise on a pole position.
“And today he went through various situations which required cold blood, I would say. Especially, I think the most stressful moment was when he went for the second time through the back markers, knowing that we could have called him in [for a pit stop] and he stayed very lucid. No panic, he came in [when we asked].
“So, I really think that Lando deserves to be praised for a very, very well managed and executed weekend. And I think this is just the start of many more coming in the future.”
The victory was Norris’ first since the season-opening Australian Grand Prix and provided an answer to critics who had started questioning his ability to match teammate Piastri over the course of the season.
However, Stella played down suggestions Monaco was a crucial result in the championship and instead said he expects both his drivers to continue to reach new heights over the course of the season.
“I don’t want to think about a turning point, because I think the journey that we are going through with Lando, which is the counterpart of a journey that we are going through with Oscar, they are simply different in terms of what we are doing, because the two drivers are in different phases, or were in different phases, and because of the characteristics and the opportunities to work on,” he said.
“So, this is a journey that is not changed by one stage of the journey.
“Certainly, this one can help a lot with the consolidation of the work that we have done [with Norris]. It shows that when you put together and you pull off good work, and you believe in this work, then you see the results. So, I think this can cement what we have done so far, but for me, we are nowhere near at the final destination.
“But for Lando and Oscar, the talent that we have available, that can be exploited, is still at the start of the journey. So, I’m really looking forward to seeing the development of Lando and Oscar, because for us at McLaren, we hope so, we worked hard for that to be the case, but also for Formula 1, in terms of having these talents flourishing in the future, I think this is a very exciting journey.”
Stella said Piastri, who finished third behind Norris and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, had simply lacked the consistency of his teammate across the Monaco weekend.
“I think with Oscar we have had spells of very strong speed,” Stella added. “Spells, if you say it like this, like moments of very strong speed. But if anything, this year, unlike last year, for instance, Oscar struggled to keep the rhythm. At times, he struggled a bit with the car, especially with some nervousness of the car in low speed.
“And this is also why, even in qualifying, it took him a little bit of time to build the proper speed and he stepped a little one step behind compared to the full potential that he could have expressed. So, more than the absolute speed, it’s the consistency of the speed that I think he missed throughout the weekend. I think there’s a few things that we need to review on Oscar’s side, but overall, a very positive weekend.
“We always say, with both Lando and Oscar, that championships are made of consistency. So, when you cannot be as fast as you want, stay there. Sometimes you will not be able to win, but stay there and this is ultimately what Oscar has been able to make.”
Source: espn.com