The crucial seconds that cost Lando Norris comfortable Spanish GP victory

Lando Norris lost the Spanish Grand Prix by roughly two seconds, the margin by which he had already passed the pit entry line when Race Control activated the Virtual Safety Car.

The VSC was triggered after Lance Stroll stopped his Aston Martin in the Turn 20 run-off with a brake failure. Norris was leading and comfortably in control at the time.

Because he had committed to starting another lap, the McLaren driver could not react. Kimi Antonelli and Max Verstappen dived straight into the pits behind him, taking their stops at VSC speeds while the field crawled.

Norris completed a full slow lap and finally came in just as the VSC period ended and green-flag running resumed, paying the full price for his stop while his rivals had banked theirs at a discount.

Driver

Lando Norris

Antonelli accepts major Spanish GP luck

A stop taken under a VSC is typically worth somewhere between four and 10 seconds of track position compared with a green-flag stop, depending on circuit layout and pit-lane delta. 

Norris said afterwards that he was the only driver on the grid not to get a pit stop and reckoned the swing cost him around 20 seconds.

The pit entry was never closed. Under the sporting regulations the pit lane stays open during a VSC, with drivers permitted to enter to change tyres, and the race director may close the entry only on safety grounds.

Antonelli acknowledged he had been fortunate with the timing, taking a cheap stop onto the hard tyre and the net lead. Norris had to settle for third, behind Verstappen.

See below just how close Norris was to the pit entry!

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