Subscribe

Sign up for free

  • Get quick access to your favorite articles

  • Manage alerts on breaking news and favorite drivers

  • Make your voice heard with article commenting.

Autosport Plus

Discover premium content
Subscribe

Zandvoort European Formula 3: McLaren's Lando Norris wins race one

Lando Norris survived a tense restart to dominate the first race of the Formula 3 European Championship's Zandvoort round

The McLaren-Honda Formula 1 team protege had to fend off an attack from BMW junior Joel Eriksson at the restart following an early safety car, but once he had done this his Carlin Dallara-Volkswagen extended its advantage with every lap.

Norris ended up 8.974 seconds in front, with Eriksson and his Motopark Dallara-VW similarly untroubled in second.

"Obviously it's a difficult track to overtake on so qualifying was a bonus, starting from pole," said Norris.

"My restart wasn't too good so Joel tried to overtake me and I got a fairly big flat-spot on my front-right tyre [from locking up in defence], but I think it only cost me ever so slightly.

"I could pull a gap and I was pretty comfortable at the front."

"We had old tyres and Lando had two new on the left side so I think that gave him some advantage," said Eriksson.

"I did my best to pass him after the safety car, but second was the best we could get today."

The safety car was caused by a spectacular crash into the opening Tarzanbocht turn.

Guan Yu Zhou, who had started eighth on the grid, ran into sixth qualifier Ralf Aron, who in turn pitched seventh starter David Beckmann into the gravel trap - with the gravel wet following overnight rain, Beckmann flipped over and the car dug in, although the diminutive German emerged unscathed.

Aron was also marooned in the gravel and out of the race, while Zhou was given a drive-through penalty after being judged to be at fault for the accident.

Maximilian Gunther retained his championship lead with third position in his Prema Powerteam Dallara-Mercedes, although the gap to Norris has narrowed to just eight points.

Gunther's Prema team-mate Callum Ilott lost fourth place at the restart to Ferdinand Habsburg, who had made a poor start from a damp patch on his front-row grid spot and dropped down the order to fifth.

Ilott threw everything into repassing the Carlin-run Austrian noble, including a side-by-side run through the Tarzanbocht, but to no avail.

Attention then turned to the train following Mick Schumacher's sixth-placed Prema car.

After Zhou took his drive-through, Van Amersfoort Racing's Pedro Piquet and Hitech GP man Jake Hughes - driving in pain with a trapped nerve in his neck this weekend - put the pressure on Schumacher, but there was no change in the order.

This in turn allowed the Carlin car of Jehan Daruvala to close up in ninth, while VAR's Harrison Newey fended off Nikita Mazepin to claim the final point.

Race one result

Pos Driver Team Car Laps Gap
1 Lando Norris Carlin Dallara/Volkswagen 21 34m40.756s
2 Joel Eriksson Motopark Dallara/Volkswagen 21 8.974s
3 Maximilian Guenther Prema Powerteam Dallara/Mercedes 21 11.653s
4 Ferdinand Habsburg Carlin Dallara/Volkswagen 21 12.493s
5 Callum Ilott Prema Powerteam Dallara/Mercedes 21 13.002s
6 Mick Schumacher Prema Powerteam Dallara/Mercedes 21 20.000s
7 Pedro Piquet Van Amersfoort Racing Dallara/Mercedes 21 21.066s
8 Jake Hughes Hitech GP Dallara/Mercedes 21 21.761s
9 Jehan Daruvala Carlin Dallara/Volkswagen 21 22.989s
10 Harrison Newey Van Amersfoort Racing Dallara/Mercedes 21 24.258s
11 Nikita Mazepin Hitech GP Dallara/Mercedes 21 24.635s
12 Keyvan Andres Motopark Dallara/Volkswagen 21 33.606s
13 Ameya Vaidyanathan Carlin Dallara/Volkswagen 21 39.197s
14 Joey Mawson Van Amersfoort Racing Dallara/Mercedes 21 43.819s
15 Marino Sato Motopark Dallara/Volkswagen 20 1 Lap
16 Guanyu Zhou Prema Powerteam Dallara/Mercedes 20 1 Lap
- Tadasuke Makino Hitech GP Dallara/Mercedes 8 Retirement
- Ralf Aron Hitech GP Dallara/Mercedes 0 Retirement
- David Beckmann Motopark Dallara/Volkswagen 0 Retirement


Be part of the Autosport community

Join the conversation
Previous article Zandvoort European Formula 3: McLaren protege Norris grabs pole
Next article Zandvoort European Formula 3: Norris on pole for final two races

Top Comments

There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?

Sign up for free

  • Get quick access to your favorite articles

  • Manage alerts on breaking news and favorite drivers

  • Make your voice heard with article commenting.

Autosport Plus

Discover premium content
Subscribe