This morning’s Miami F1 Grand Prix winner, Lando Norris, won his first GP back in 2016. While the New Zealand Grand Prix may not be the calibre of the Formula One Championship, it is still a FIA recognised race, one of two held outside the top category. The other being the Macau Grand Prix.
Norris is the first ex Toyota Racing Series driver to win a Formula One Grand Prix and knowing his talent, it could be the first of many.
The current McLaren F1 driver won the 2016 TRS title from Indian Jehan Daruvala with Kiwi Brendon Leitch third. Also racing in that season of TRS is current Kick Sauber driver Zhou Guanyu.
It was the 12th running of the Toyota Racing Series with 15 races held over five consecutive weekends beginning in January 2016. Nineteen drivers competed in all races with Australian Thomas Randle returning to the series for the final NZ Grand Prix round at Manfeild Park in Feilding.
Ferdinand Habsburg won the opening race at the Mike Pero Motorsport Park in Christchurch. Norris won the second but it was Daruvala who won the prestigious Lady Wigram Trophy.
Daruvala was to win three races and stand on the podium six times but it was Norris who had 11 podiums including six race victories, wrapping up the series title with one race to spare.
Heading into the final round, Norris had an 86-point lead over nearest rival Brazilian Pedro Piquet. However, Piquet dropped to fifth overall after a retirement in the first race of the NZ Grand Prix weekend dented his title run.
Sixteen-year-old Norris led the 35-lap Grand Prix from start to finish, claiming that ‘It’s the longest race I’ve ever done!”
Later that year Norris announced in November that he would return to defend his title. However, having won the McLaren Autosport Award he soon announced that he wouldn’t contest the 2017 series due to commitments with the British Racing Drivers Club in January 2017.
Comments