'Copybook victory as Norris and McLaren come through chaos unscathed'

Lando Norris and McLaren delivered connected their imaginable with a copybook triumph successful a demanding Australian Grand Prix successful the astir hard of conditions to enactment their stamp connected the commencement of the caller Formula 1 season.

Briton Norris described his triumph arsenic "stressful but rewarding".

The archetypal adjective was justified by the conditions successful a madcap, crash-strewn, incident-packed contention wherever 1 tiny mistake tin spell catastrophe - arsenic it precise astir did for Norris himself astatine 1 point.

The 2nd adjective was a designation of the information that this was precisely the benignant of contention successful which, past year, McLaren had proved little than perfect, and thrown distant astatine slightest 1 imaginable victory, and possibly another, too.

But successful Melbourne they were arsenic cleanable arsenic it is imaginable to beryllium successful conditions specified arsenic these - adjacent the renowned rain-master Max Verstappen slipped up astatine 1 point. And they came done the chaos unscathed.

The good enactment betwixt triumph and decision was underlined by an incidental with 13 laps to spell that defined the race.

Norris was starring from team-mate Oscar Piastri and Verstappen arsenic a dense ablution of rainfall approached the track.

It deed arsenic the leaders were negotiating the last corners connected thigh 44, with 13 to go.

Both McLarens ran wide connected to the gravel astatine the exit of Turn 12, and Australian Piastri past spun done Turn 13.

Norris was capable to proceed without losing excessively overmuch time, but Piastri ended up connected the writer connected the extracurricular of Turn 12, wherever helium sat with his wheels spinning helplessly for what seemed similar an property arsenic his hopes of triumph astatine location evaporated earlier yet rejoining. He fought backmost to ninth by the end.

Norris instantly pitted for treaded tyres. That determination won him the race, and demonstrated however acold helium and the squad had travel since past twelvemonth - they had pre-planned that they would pit arsenic soon arsenic it rained, and acted decisively connected the plan.

Verstappen stayed retired and took the lead, but arsenic the rainfall intensified helium mislaid much time, and Norris resumed the pb erstwhile the Dutchman pitted himself 2 laps later.

Norris said: "It's truthful casual to marque a mistake, truthful casual to ruin everything, you know? So rapidly it tin each person gone incorrect wrong a second.

"Any 2nd of the race, you fastener up, you deed the achromatic enactment wrong, you person a large snap, it was conscionable very, precise hard astatine times to conscionable not spell into a spread oregon a tyre obstruction somewhere.

"So that's similar a large capable challenge, but past erstwhile you've got the upwind changing and the way conditions changing, knowing erstwhile to marque the close determination to alteration connected to a slick tyre and enactment retired connected the inter-tyre, and past adjacent much erstwhile I've got Max down maine and Oscar down me, it's stressful.

"But that's what makes it rewarding.

"We worked a batch implicit the wintertime to hole for a contention similar this, due to the fact that it's wherever we threw distant a batch of opportunities past season.

"Canada, Silverstone, wherever we were not the champion astatine preparing and knowing however decisive we've got to be, and contiguous we were very, precise decisive, calling to container 5 metres earlier I boxed, but it was the close telephone successful the end, and that won america the race."

The contention was not over, though.

In the last 5 laps aft the last restart, Norris had Verstappen close down him. The McLaren was hampered by important level harm - incurred either successful the antecedently mentioned off, oregon successful different successful those last laps astatine Turn Six - but helium hung on, contempt Verstappen being little than a 2nd behind, and having usage of the DRS overtaking aid.

The 25-year-old Norris, for whom past play was his archetypal warring consistently astatine the front, underlined his inexperience erstwhile helium said: "That concern was caller for me, you know, I've not ever led a contention with 5 laps to spell with Max down me, trying to enactment maine nether pressure, and successful these conditions.

"Maybe Max has had that a fewer times successful his contention against Lewis (Hamilton) a lot, and helium tin conscionable woody with that astir apt amended than I can.

"I'm blessed I got done it and stayed calm. It's thing I improved from past year."

McLaren's show was arsenic expected. They were the quickest car each play and delivered connected a presumption arsenic favourites that Norris acknowledged some earlier and aft the contention was justified.

They earned it successful pre-season testing, but Norris said that portion the agelong tally successful Bahrain 2 weeks agone had demonstrated their beardown pace, the car was not needfully arsenic bully arsenic immoderate felt it looked there.

The job, helium emphasised, was lone conscionable beginning, and not each races would beryllium similar this.

"The car's flying," Norris said, "but we're going to person races wherever we are going to struggle. We contention successful Bahrain arsenic circular one, I wouldn't beryllium assured that we could triumph the race.

"But I'm assured that we're going to, say, China adjacent weekend, and we tin beryllium very, precise strong, due to the fact that we were beardown determination past year, with not a precise bully car."

In the post-race quality conference, with Verstappen and Mercedes' George Russell connected either broadside of him, helium besides pointed retired that helium felt that Piastri's beingness alongside him was partially liable for McLaren's beardown weekend, making a pointed notation to the rookie team-mates of his rivals.

"Let's let a fewer much races to instrumentality spot earlier we commencement making immoderate (predictions) but we're the favourites, we are the squad to beat, chiefly due to the fact that we person 2 drivers up determination pushing each other," helium said.

"That helps. Do I deliberation maine and Oscar moving unneurotic yesterday, successful presumption of pushing 1 another, allowed america to get 1 and a half, 1 10th much than the 2 drivers here, due to the fact that their team-mates aren't arsenic equipped and arsenic experienced? Yes."

Verstappen and Russell, meanwhile, were talking arsenic if they cognize that McLaren volition instrumentality immoderate beating.

Verstappen was reflecting connected the information that helium mislaid 15 seconds to the McLarens implicit the archetypal stint arsenic the way dried.

"As the tyres started to overheat we had nary chance," helium said, "and yet fundamentally McLaren conscionable took off. So we inactive person a batch of enactment to bash to combat for a win, but I'm precise blessed that we are 2nd here, it's fundamentally 1 spot amended than we should person been. We'll bash our best."

Russell added: "They look beauteous bully and groovy astatine the moment, so, yeah, we'll see."