A rainy Russian Grand Prix in 2021 saw Lando Norris ‘heartbroken’ after losing his maiden race win after admitting he made the ‘wrong decision’.
The Brit took his first pole position on the Saturday and led the majority of the grand prix before a heavy rain shower with four laps to go, which saw a dramatic end to the race.
Norris was eyeing his maiden Formula 1 win, but a late call to change tyres saw him drop down the ranks before he crossed the finish line.
The 21-year-old had managed to hold off Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton in the dry conditions, with both cars leading over 40 seconds clear of third place.
When the heavy rain hit the Sochi Autodrom, Hamilton initially ignored Mercedes calls to pit for intermediate tyres, but was quick to change his decision and box.
Lando Norris makes strategy mistake when heavy rain hits 2021 Russian Grand Prix
Norris admitted he made the ‘wrong decision’ when he stayed out despite McLaren repeatedly asking him to also make the switch to intermediates.
The young driver’s mistake quickly became apparent as the rain intensified, which resulted in Norris struggling to keep his McLaren on the track.
Norris was tiptoeing his way around the circuit, making several errors and going wide. Hamilton had come out of the pit lane 25 seconds behind the McLaren but had managed to quickly catch the struggling Norris.
On lap 51 of 53, Norris took a slide at Turn 3, with Hamilton breezing past on his intermediate tyres. Norris was quick on the radio to tell his engineers: “It’s so wet boys. I’ve got to box. I want to swap, I can’t do this.”
Norris’ late decision saw him drop back to eighth but he was able to pass Kimi Raikkonen’s Alfa Romeo to finish the race in seventh place.
The young driver was given a reprimand following the race for losing control of his McLaren as he came into the pit lane.
Norris came into the pits, but with a slippery surface, found himself sliding back onto the track. He then had to drive back across the line dividing the pit lane and the track, which normally sees drivers being handed a time penalty.
The FIA later released a statement that said the driver had breached the regulations, but due to the deteriorating conditions, Norris was driving at around half the normal pit entry speed and slid across the painted area.
An FIA statement said: “We do not consider that the crossing of the painted area was intentional or predictable in the circumstances.”
Following the race, Norris told Sky Sports F1: “I don’t know where to start. I’m unhappy, devastated in a way” before adding: “It was my decision, I thought it was the way to go.”
The pair later spoke through their decisions to pit, with Hamilton telling the young driver that he also hadn’t wanted to box for intermediate tyres, telling Norris that he even ignored the first call from his team.
Norris had been agonisingly close to his first F1 win, and admitted that it complicated his decision to change tyres, before the heavy rain caught him out.
The McLaren driver said he made ‘a couple of mistakes’ but was still able to defend from Hamilton before saying: “I’m happy with everything apart from that one decision which we’ll review and try not to make again.”
Following the race, he was understandably emotional and shared that he had received lots of messages from around the paddock, saying: “There were a lot of ‘Your time will come!’ But no matter what, they definitely helped.”