Lando Norris ended an eight-month wait for a Formula One victory with a commanding, near-flawless drive to win the Hungarian Grand Prix at the Hungaroring on Sunday, giving McLaren their first win of the 2026 season.
The defending world champion started from pole and, after briefly losing the lead to team-mate Oscar Piastri on the opening lap, reclaimed control when a collision with Carlos Sainz's Williams delayed the Australian during the pit-stop phase. Norris emerged from his second stop ahead of Piastri and cruised to a comfortable victory, finishing ahead of Red Bull's Max Verstappen, while Mercedes teenager Kimi Antonelli completed the podium in third.
"My pace today was probably some of the best pace I've ever had," Norris said. "The car was beautiful to drive and I had confidence. I'm just happy to be back and see the number one again."
The win, his 12th in F1 and his second in succession in Hungary, was his first in a grand prix since Sao Paulo in November last year, though he did win a sprint in Miami in May. It was also a relief for a McLaren team whose 2026 campaign had started below expectations despite Norris arriving as champion.
The race was not without drama. Piastri looked set for a McLaren one-two after leading for much of the first half, but his hopes ended 14 laps from the flag when a gearbox failure forced him to pull over. That promoted Verstappen, whose strategy gamble paid off, into second.
Behind them, Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton crossed the line fourth but was handed a five-second penalty for speeding in the pit lane, dropping him to fifth behind team-mate Charles Leclerc. Hamilton's Mercedes colleague George Russell finished seventh after a disastrous start left him 19th on the first lap.
The result tightened the margins at the top of the standings: Antonelli extended his championship lead to 50 points over Hamilton and 59 over Russell. Hungary was the final round before Formula One's mid-season break, with the championship resuming at the Dutch Grand Prix on 23 August.
Norris, whose day was briefly clouded by the controversial strategy that frustrated Piastri, was in no mood to dwell on the team dynamic. "Nice to finally be able to do it all for you," he told his crew over the radio. "We were flying."
Sources
- https://www.bbc.com/sport/formula1/articles/cm2gnkyl8j1o
- https://www.aljazeera.com/sports/2026/7/26/lando-norris-wins-hungarian-grand-prix-for-first-f1-triumph-in-2026
- https://www.timeslive.co.za/motoring/2026-07-26-norris-wins-hungarian-grand-prix/
