Zandvoort defeat could free Norris mentally

Lando Norris left Zandvoort with his title hopes badly dented and his spirits visibly crushed after an oil leak ended what looked certain to be a second place finish.

Beaten to pole by teammate Oscar Piastri by a fraction, Norris had shadowed the Australian all race before smoke filled the cockpit of his McLaren and forced him into retirement. TV images of the 25-year-old sitting alone on the Zandvoort dunes evoked memories of Mika Hakkinen’s emotional Monza breakdown in 1999.

Afterwards, Norris tried to lighten the mood when standing alongside Max Verstappen. “I was hoping you’d run into Piastri,” he joked of the Dutchman’s bold first-lap attack. Verstappen replied with a grin: “Yeah? Just take him out. I tried. "Next week you’ll have a new engine and a bit more power.”

But the Briton admitted privately that the setback stung. “I have nothing to blame myself for,” he said. “But if I lose the World Championship because of this, it would be tough.”

Sky Deutschland pundit Ralf Schumacher offered encouragement. “As crazy as this sounds, this takes the pressure off Lando. He can’t do anything else but fight freely again. I know that sounds strange, but it might be mentally helpful,” he said.

Team boss Andrea Stella agreed Norris wouldn’t let desperation change his racing style. “When Lando says he’ll take more risks, he means he’ll get more out of himself,” Stella explained. “He’s one of the fairest drivers in the field. I don’t expect him to take any major risks in the battle with Oscar.”

Norris himself called the whole weekend “unlucky”, narrowly losing pole on Saturday and then suffering McLaren’s first technical problem in months on Sunday.

“It was an oil leak,” Stella confirmed. “We’ve identified a chassis issue and will do a full check before Monza.” The Briton also surprised many by hinting that if he ever does achieve the title, it could be the perfect exit point.

“Sometimes it’s good to leave when you’ve won, like Nico (Rosberg) did,” he told Total-Motorsport and MTV Finland. “Just one championship. No need to continue after that. You’ve already achieved your goal and can start living an incredible life.”