(FORMULA 1) – Lando Norris claimed his and McLaren’s first Grand Prix victory of 2026 in Sunday’s Hungarian Grand Prix, taking the chequered flag ahead of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli – after mid-race drama and a late retirement for team mate Oscar Piastri.
Polesitter Norris spent the first half of the race in Piastri’s mirrors, having been jumped at Turn 2 on the opening lap – the latter doing just enough to hold onto the lead thereafter, and McLaren resisting Norris’ calls to be ushered through.
However, the intra-team battle was flipped on its head just after the midway point when Piastri – fresh from his second pit stop – encountered traffic in the form of Carlos Sainz in the first sector, and dramatically made contact with the Williams.
That moment, added to Norris’ sublime pace in clear air ahead of his own second stop, swung the race in the reigning World Champion’s favour, before Piastri’s day ended in despair thanks to an apparent gearbox problem.
A Virtual Safety Car (VSC) triggered by Piastri’s stoppage led to more pit lane action, with Verstappen and Antonelli (who had just swapped tyres) staying out to take second and third respectively, ahead of three-stopping Ferrari pair Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc.
Hamilton had initially emerged from that final stop ahead of Antonelli, only to cede the position after replays showed he had reached the relevant VSC white line at the end of the start/finish straight just behind the Mercedes.
A five-second penalty for speeding in the pits ended any hopes Hamilton had of finishing on the podium, even if he pressed on and harried Antonelli to the flag, with Leclerc also edging ahead for P4 once the sanction was applied.
Isack Hadjar took sixth place in the other Red Bull machine, with George Russell winding up P7 after a dreadful start to the race – due to the anti-stall kicking in – saw him drop as low as 21st.
Racing Bulls scored another double points finish with Liam Lawson and Arvid Lindblad, who placed eighth and 10th, around Audi’s Nico Hulkenberg, while the German’s team mate, Gabriel Bortoleto, just missed out on a reward in 11th.
In their most encouraging display of the season so far, Aston Martin pair Lance Stroll and Fernando Alonso took their updated cars to P13 and P14, splitting the Alpines of Pierre Gasly and Franco Colapinto, and beating both Haas and Williams cars.
Piastri was left to watch the final 15 laps from the sidelines following his retirement, with the Cadillacs of Valtteri Bottas (overheating brakes) and Sergio Perez (an issue at the front-left) also failing to finish.
