Formula 1 Dashboard
Before Miami
The first six races/sprints of the season saw a significant gap between Verstappen and Norris. The data suggests that on average, Norris finished nearly 25 seconds behind Verstappen. This gap highlighted the need for McLaren to improve their car's performance if they were to challenge Red Bull for the championship.
Gap in sec at the finish line between Verstappen and Norris
- Bahrain: +48.458
- Saudi Arabia: +45.708
- Australia: NA (Verstappen DNF)
- Japan: +29.700
- China (Sprint): +22.088
- China: +13.773
- Miami (Sprint): NA (Norris DNF)
- Miami: -7.612
- Emilia-Romagna: +0.725
- Monaco: -5.203
- Canada: +3.879
- Spain: +2.219
- Austria (Sprint): +5.348
- Austria: NA (Norris DNF)
- Great Britain: +6.082
- Hungary: -19.208
- Belgium: +0.624
- Netherlands: -22.896
- Italy: -31.779
- Azerbaijan: -40.955 (Finish under VSC, VER made an extra pit)
- Singapore: -20.945
- United States (Sprint): +6.240s
- United States: +0.942s
- Mexico: -54.853s
- Brazil (Sprint): -6.497s
- Brazil: +31.372s
Miami and Beyond
The Miami Grand Prix, the seventh race of the season, has been a turning point for McLaren. It was here that the team introduced a significant package of upgrades to their car. The impact seems to have been dramatic.
Since Miami, the gap between Verstappen and Norris has shrunk considerably. On average, Norris has been finishing just over 6 seconds behind Verstappen in the last eight races. This dramatic shift suggests that McLaren's upgrades were a success.
Gap in points between Verstappen and Norris per race weekend
McLaren on the Rise?
The data strongly suggests that McLaren's technical upgrades delivered a significant improvement in car performance. The gap to Red Bull has narrowed considerably, and Norris has been much more competitive in recent races. McLaren can now challenge Red Bull for the championship. Will Verstappen and Red Bull be able to maintain their lead? Only time will tell, but one thing is for sure: the battle at the front of the grid is far from over.