‘Red Bull have given up on that’ – The ‘obvious’ outcome after Lando Norris’ epic Dutch win

Lando Norris pipped Max Verstappen to P1 in Zandvoort.

Red Bull have “given up” on beating McLaren to the Constructors’ Championship with Robert Doornbos declaring they aren’t even worried about it as it’s “obvious” that will happen.

Red Bull may have started the season as the team to beat with four wins in five races, but since Lando Norris’ Miami triumph in McLaren’s upgraded MCL38, it’s the Woking team who has scored the most points.

Red Bull’s lead in the Constructors’ is down to 30 points

Bagging 308 to Red Bull’s 239, McLaren have closed the gap to just 30 points with nine races remaining as they’ve capitalised on not only their own on-track improvements but also Sergio Perez’s troubles.

While McLaren have been able to rely on both drivers scoring podiums and even wins, Perez has left Max Verstappen to carry Red Bull alone with even team boss Christian Horner admitting before summer break that they’re running on “one leg”.

Former F1 driver Doornbos is impressed with McLaren’s turnaround which saw Norris set a 2024 record for the biggest winning margin when he beat Verstappen by 22.8s in Zandvoort.

“I thought he was just really cool. It’s new for him too, it’s only his second Grand Prix win. He acted like it was his 32nd,” the Dutchman told Ziggo’s ‘Crashen in de Keuken’. “He only won in Miami this year, and now.

“The first race of the season was won by Max Verstappen. He was 45 seconds ahead of Lando Norris then, and now Norris finishes 23 seconds ahead of Verstappen. So things can turn that fast.”

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The updated Drivers’ and Constructors’ standings after the Dutch Grand Prix

It has Doornbos claiming Red Bull have all but given up on retaining the Constructors’ title for a third season but they can thank McLaren’s team orders in Hungary that Norris isn’t closer to Verstappen in the Drivers’ standings.

“The McLaren is now a monster of a car,” he added. “They really need to worry at Red Bull.

“If they hadn’t changed [McLaren driver swap- in Hungary, the difference would only have been 63 points. There are nine more Grands Prix, as well as three more sprint races, in the United States, Brazil, and Qatar.

“In the Constructors’, we just know McLaren will be champion, that’s just obvious.

“I don’t think Red Bull even has any fears anymore about whether this is going to happen or not. They have given up on that.”

Norris’ victory in Zandvoort may have been only his second this season, but Doornbos believes such is McLaren’s advantage he could add another eight before the season is over.

And then the Drivers’ standings may look a lot different.

“They still have the lead in both championships. Very honestly, as a neutral viewer, it’s very cool when Abu Dhabi gets closer, and then we have another championship. Nine races Norris is not going to win, but eight maybe,” he said.

As for Norris, the McLaren driver insists he’s always been in the championship fight, it’s not something new in his mindset.

“I’ve been fighting for the championship since the first race of the year,” he told the media including PlanetF1.com. “There’s no sudden decision of now.

“I need to do better. I’ve been working hard the whole year and I’m still 70 points behind Max. So it’s pretty stupid to think of anything at the minute.

“I just take one race at a time and just keep doing what I’m doing now because there’s no point to think ahead and think of the rest. I don’t care about it at the minute. I’m just…

“Yeah, focused on one race at a time. So it’s not a question that I need to get asked every single weekend.”

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