Norris on 'very generous' help from Sainz to finish P2 at Singapore
The Singapore Grand Prix proved to be one of the most exciting races of the 2023 season so far, with several cars battling for the lead at one point or another.
With the virtual safety car brought out on lap 43 when Esteban Ocon pulled over with an issue, Mercedes gambled and brought both their cars in for fresh medium tyres.
It would quickly come apparent George Russell and Lewis Hamilton had a real chance of winning the race, as they were up to two seconds a lap faster than the front three of Carlos Sainz, Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc, who were all on older hard tyres.
After breezing past Leclerc with eight laps to go, the Mercedes drivers would quickly catch up to Sainz and Norris who were seperated by just a second. Recognising the real threat of Russell and Hamilton if they bypassed Norris, Sainz dropped back to give Norris DRS and defend his lead.
The DRS advantage given to Norris helped him defend from the Mercedes, ultimately aiding him in holding onto P2, while Sainz was able to take victory for Ferrari.
"Carlos was very generous trying to help me get DRS. It helped my race and it also helped his", said Norris in his post-race interview. "We knew it was going to be tough as soon as the Mercedes' boxed, especially with only a couple of cars for them to overtake, but we are on the podium, P2, and we held them off.
"We did everything we needed to do and more. So super happy.”
Norris' excellent defence kept the lightning-fast Russell at bay for lap-upon-lap, giving his fellow Brit no chance of sending a move into any of the braking zones. On the last lap however, both Norris and Russell would clip the wall.
Fortunately for Norris, his McLaren was unaffected by the contact and he could take the corner. Russell however became a passenger in his own car, crashing into the barriers and out of the race as Norris and Hamilton drove on.
"I hit the wall in the same place, I did the same. So I think he copied me and did it even worse. So I feel for him, he fought a tough race, he was the quickest I would say out there today", said Norris.
"So it helped me a bit, the last couple of corners I could chill.”
Norris' P2 matches his best ever F1 result for the third time this season, in another strong points haul for the 23-year-old.
