McLarens disqualified after Norris error hands Max Verstappen victory

Lando Norris’s grasp on the Formula 1 World Championship seemed so secure after the Las Vegas Grand Prix that he was even joking about an error at the start of the race, which handed Max Verstappen the lead.

The Red Bull driver went on to control the race, finishing 20sec ahead. But as second-placed Norris surveyed a championship lead that stretched to 42 points over Verstappen, it put the braking error that saw him run wide into Turn 1 into perspective.

“I let Max have a win, let him have a nice race. I wanted to put on a show, right?” laughed Norris, who has tended to be highly self-critical after mistakes. “No, I just braked too late… Not my best performance out there. Still some good points so I’m not too disappointed.”

An hour later, his attitude would have been less carefree after race officials conducting standard inspections found that the underfloor plank on both McLarens had worn down by more than was permitted by the regulations.

The margin of the error — around 0.1mm — wasn’t the issue. As one of the series’ black and white technical requirements, it was a breach and only one verdict could apply: disqualification.

Norris lost his second place and Piastri his fourth, promoting George Russell to second and Kimi Antonelli to third — another driver who fell victim to F1’s fine margins when a “slight” movement on the grid was judged to be a jump start, resulting in a 5sec penalty.

The headlines are dramatic, but the outcome perhaps less so. Norris’s 24 point lead in the title race, over Piastri and verstappen who sit level in second, is still a formidable lead with two rounds remaining. Neither Norris or Piastri will be perturbed losing their Las Vegas positions. Second and fourth places have long ceased to matter to two drivers for whom victory is the only goal.

Even without the early mistake, winning in Las Vegas looked to be a s tough ask for Norris, who would have had his work cut out defending against Verstappen.

The 20sec gap was largely due to Norris being told to lift and coast and the end of the race — apparently to save fuel, perhaps mainly to reduce plank wear — but he was unable to mount a challenge any earlier.

He was behind Russell in the first stage of the race, then passed him after pitting, when a power steering issue that had affected Mercedes in qualifying reappeared. In clear air, he was still unable to close in on Verstappen.

“Normally the race is always a tough one for us,” said Verstappen who talked of being able to manage his tyres more effectively. “I could push a little bit more. The car was working pretty well, much more to my liking.”

Behind the top three was a battle for fourth place between Piastri, who had initially dropped into seventh place after the contact with Lawson; Charles Leclerc, having battled through from ninth on the grid; and Kimi Antonelli who pitted on lap two under a virtual safety car then ran the rest of the race on a set of hard tyres.

The strategy eventually paid off for the Mercedes driver, who crossed the line fourth, but was demoted to fifth due to a 5sec penalty for a “slight” movement on the grid before the lights went out. Following the McLaren disqualifications, he was classified a podium finisher.

Carlos Sainz, who started third, didn’t appear to have the pace to join the fight for fourth and finished seventh.

Lewis Hamilton took the chequered flag in tenth, after starting 19th on the grid. He was hit by Alex Albon during the race; he Williams driver then retiring with damage, having also crashed in qualifying.

Drama at Turn 1

The decisive moment in the race came in Turn 1 at the start for more than half of the drivers in the race.

Norris swept to the left in an aggressive move across Verstappen’s path, but immediately ran wide at the first corner, giving the reigning champion a clear path into the lead. He was followed by Russell.

Behind them, Antonelli had already made the jump start that would cost him fourth place and Lawson had swiped Piastri — the debris resulting in a virtual safety car that prompted Antonelli’s pitstop, and dropping the Racing Bulls driver down the rankings.

From 18th on the grid, Gabriel Bortoleto spied a chance to make progress, as a narrow corridor opened on the inside of the run into Turn 1. But —inevitably — the gap narrowed as drivers turned in ahead of him and the the Sauber driver was two slow on the brakes. He slammed into the side of Lance Stroll’s Aston Martin, taking both cars out of the race, and spinning Pierre Gasly around.

Avoiding the chaos was Hamilton, who moved up to 12th as a result, going on to pass both Haas cars later in the race to claim his single championship point.

Russell’s struggles

Russell, reporting a repeat of Saturday’s power steering issue pitted early from second but wasn’t a threat to the race leader, as he lapped at the same pace as Verstappen, despite fresher tyres.

He then sealed his fate when he tried to make his move when  Verstappen pitted. “I saw that opportunity to to attack and just push really hard for two laps, and I destroyed my tyres.” said Russell. “I wasn’t sure they would make it to the end.

“I thought Max was going to struggle a bit more on his out lap, and I had to go for it. And if I nursed my tyres in those laps, I’d be sitting here still in P3, maybe wondering if only I could have attacked when I had the opportunity.”

It meant that Norris had little difficulty in passing Russell for second when he pitted. He was told to “go and get Max,” but wasn’t able to close in, even before being told to save fuel.

When a guy wins by 20sec, it’s because he’s done a better job,” said Norris, who can still win the championship next weekend in Qatar, by taking two points from both Piastri and Verstappen.

2025 Las Vegas Grand Prix result

*Includes 5sec penalty