Lando takes brilliant maiden victory in Formula Renault 2.0 NEC

Monday
16
May 2016
at
Silverstone
with
Lando Norris
Lando Norris sealed a brilliant lights-to-flag win at Silverstone in the Formula Renault 2.0 Northern European Cup this weekend (14-15 May).

The 16-year-old put on a commanding performance to take his maiden victory in the Championship.

It was the perfect response from the Josef Kaufmann Racing driver after the disappointment of being forced to retire before the start of the first race on Saturday due to a gearbox issue.

And after watching the end of the race from the stands the ADD Motorsports-supported racer ensured he made amends in the final race of the weekend.

He said: “I was pretty disappointed after the first race, but it was just one of those things, there was nothing we could do. I had a great car and the pace was good but we had a mechanical problem. But I kept focus and got a good win in the second race. I got a really good start and a good gap and I made sure I didn’t make any mistakes. It’s great to get my first win in the Championship.”

After third and fourth place-finishes during the opening weekend at Monza, the team changed strategy at Silverstone, deciding to use old tyres in the practice sessions and keep two sets of new tyres for both qualifiers.

But after getting a great first lap in during the first qualifier, he made a mistake that left the car spinning in the dirt and lost momentum, finishing second. 

He made amends in the second qualifier, getting a fast time in on the first lap that was enough to get pole for the second race.

However, all the hard work was soon undone. On the warm-up lap of the first race, Lando realised he had a gearbox problem that prevented him from changing gear. Unfortunately, despite his best attempts, it meant he was forced to retire before the race got underway.

Thankfully, the second race couldn’t have gone better, with Lando getting off to a great start and leading the whole way to finish more than four seconds ahead of his nearest rival for a comprehensive victory.

The win leaves Lando in fifth place in the Championship.

He added: “It was a good weekend overall, even with the problems in the first race. Hopefully I’ll be able to get more some more wins now and move up the standings.”