Lando Norris, a McLaren driver, managed to close the first half of this season's Formula One (F1) race with an impressive victory in the 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix at the weekend.
The defending champion closed his appearance at the Hungaroring Circuit on Sunday, July 26, 2026, WIB night, with a time of one hour 39 minutes 56.180 seconds. This is McLaren's first victory in this year's racing calendar.
"My speed today was probably one of the best speeds I've ever achieved. The car is very comfortable to drive and I feel very confident. So, an amazing race," said Norris.
The victory was an answer to the start of the season that did not go smoothly for Norris and the McLaren team. Norris was finally able to maximize his full potential after getting a car with a competitive performance like last season.
McLaren had a near-flawless race in Hungary. Norris' victory there was judged as one of the most convincing performances of the 2026 Formula 1 season amid the spotlight on Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli's sensational performance.
On the other hand, Ferrari who came as a favorite failed to meet expectations. The Italian team performed below standard and made too many mistakes, something that was also acknowledged by team boss Frederic Vasseur.
Norris' race actually started with a mistake. Although he was successful in maintaining the leading position from pole position at Turn 1, he lost grip at Turn 2 so he widened and gave the leading position to his teammate, Oscar Piastri.
The mistake was expected to bury the chances of winning because the Hungaroring is known as one of the most difficult tracks to overtake if the two cars have balanced performance and strategy. However, Norris chose to remain calm.
"I didn't really go through Turn 2 well. However, after that I saw that my car speed was very good. From the side of pace and tire degradation, I was superior. So, I'm sure I can still win the race," said Norris.
Following Norris in the Hungarian GP was Red Bull's Max Verstappen. The four-time world champion is 15.080 seconds behind to get an additional 18 points.
Meanwhile, Antonelli finished the race in third place after the possibility of finishing one-two for McLaren was gone because Oscar Piastri retired due to gearbox damage 14 laps before the end of the race.
Despite finishing in third place, Antonelli managed to expand his overall lead to 50 points in the standings. The 19-year-old young racer from Italy now has 219 points, followed by Lewis Hamilton (169 points) in second place, and George Russell (160 points) in third place.
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