Lando Norris Won the Hungarian Grand Prix After a Backmarker Rammed His Teammate Off the Road

By

Lando Norris driving the McLaren MCL40 Mercedes on track at the Hungaroring during the 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix
Clive Mason / Getty Images Sport via Getty Images

Lando Norris won the Hungarian Grand Prix.

Lando Norris driving the McLaren MCL40 Mercedes on track at the Hungaroring during the 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix
Lando Norris steers the McLaren MCL40 Mercedes around the Hungaroring circuit during the Hungarian Grand Prix on July 26, 2026. Photo by Clive Mason / Getty Images.

Oscar Piastri had the race in hand before Carlos Sainz, locked in a fight with Fernando Alonso for 15th, ignored the blue flags and rammed him off the road. His front-right tire caught Sainz’s rear-left, costing him up to two seconds.

Lando Norris celebrating with his McLaren team after winning the F1 Grand Prix of Hungary at Hungaroring
Lando Norris and the McLaren team celebrate his victory at the Hungaroring in Budapest on July 26, 2026. Photo by Sona Maleterova / Getty Images.

“Get out of the f—ing way, you idiot, oh my God,” Piastri yelled over the radio.

Norris stopped immediately for tires and came out in the net lead, then passed Kimi Antonelli on Lap 46 to control the rest of the race. It’s his first victory of a title defense that started with a sloppy launch from pole, when he ran wide at the second corner and handed Piastri the lead.

Lando Norris celebrating after winning the 2026 Formula 1 Hungarian Grand Prix at the Hungaroring
Lando Norris celebrates his victory at the Hungaroring in Mogyoród, Hungary, on July 26, 2026. Photo by Arpad Kurucz / Anadolu via Getty Images.

Piastri’s afternoon got worse when his gearbox expired with 14 laps to go, sending him from second to a retirement. His engineer Tom Stallard told him Sainz was to blame. “Oh mate, just don’t even f—ing talk to me,” he replied.

Max Verstappen finished second and Antonelli third, extending the Italian teenager’s championship lead over Lewis Hamilton from 45 points to 50. Hamilton crossed the line fourth but a five-second pit-lane speeding penalty dropped him to fifth behind Charles Leclerc, his fourth sanction from the stewards in three rounds.

The season resumes in the Netherlands on Aug. 23, with 12 rounds left

Thank you for reading. Catch all of Thought Catalog’s latest on Facebook and our website.