Martin Brundle highlights ‘extraordinary’ thing McLaren have done that makes him love F1

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Lando Norris put in a dominant display to win the Singapore Grand Prix by 20 seconds from Max Verstappen, further denting his lead in the Drivers’ Championship.

The Briton took a lights-to-flag victory around the Marina Bay Street Circuit and briefly held the fastest lap of the race before it was taken by Daniel Ricciardo on the final lap of the race.

Lando Norris is now just 52 points behind Max Verstappen in the championship, meaning the Dutchman could secure his fourth title if he finishes second to the McLaren driver in every one of the next six races.

Discussing Norris’ race during commentary for Sky Sports, former driver Martin Brundle highlighted one thing that McLaren has managed to achieve that makes him love Formula 1.

Martin Brundle highlights impressive progress made by McLaren

During the opening stages of the race, Norris was told by his engineer Will Joseph to build a gap to Verstappen in anticipation of his first pit stop by his engineer.

Norris eventually put a full pit stop between him and Verstappen, showing how unstoppable he has been in Singapore this weekend.

Brundle highlighted how his commanding victory has been down to McLaren’s developments off-track, having previously finished second to Red Bull by similar margins.

“Here’s a team that’s suddenly like ‘Just put five seconds on Max for us’ and they can! It’s extraordinary, the rate of change and the rate of development,” said Brundle.

“That’s something I love about F1, stand still and you’ll go backwards at a fast rate of knots.”

McLaren extended their lead in the Constructors’ Championship with a win and third place from Oscar Piastri in the Singapore GP, meaning they now lead by 41 points.

Lando Norris nearly crashed out of Singapore GP

Norris was pulling a commanding gap on Verstappen but had a few near misses, having brushed the walls on occasion and encountering scary moments at Turn 8 and Turn 14.

At Turn 14 he nearly went head-on into the barrier after locking up before his first pit stop on fatigued tyres, eventually asking his team if there was any damage to his front wing.

Norris built a lead of over 25 seconds before Verstappen made his first pit stop on Lap 29, with the McLaren driver following him in a lap later.

It was also the first time that Norris managed to lead a lap from pole after five attempts this season, which has reinforced his claim to this year’s championship in the battle with Verstappen.