“They put me on hard, I don't know why”: Lando Norris 'doesn’t care' about McLaren’s tire strategy after finishing P2 at Silverstone

Lando Norris repeated his best-ever Formula 1 finish (P2) at his home race, the 2023 British Grand Prix, while defending against the seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton.

Norris was slightly confused about McLaren's strategy, who put him on hard tires while Hamilton was on soft tires. However, the 23-year-old British driver wasn't too bothered, having secured the second podium of his career. During his post-race interview with David Coulthard, he said:

"They put me on hard tires, don't know why that's still our beginners and some things but yeah."

"It was an amazing fight with Lewis. To hold him off, made a few, too many mistakes, maybe. But I did what I could. I brought the fight to Max for as long as possible."

Lando Norris enjoyed an incredible start to the race after he held off Max Verstappen and had the lead for the first couple of laps until the Dutchman closed the gap and overtook him.

Kevin Magnussen's retirement due to engine issues saw the deployment of the safety cars, and while Norris was still on the medium compound, he was called in and put on the hard tires instead of the soft tires. Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton behind him had the soft compound. After the race, Norris said:

"Yeah, I mean, I wanted this off so I feel like it made a bit more sense especially with the safety car going out. But I don't care, I’m P2, so all good."

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McLaren's tire warm-up helps Lando Norris defend P2 from Lewis Hamilton

It was difficult for drivers to pick up pace for the first few laps on the hard compound at the British GP, and it seemed as if Hamilton would surely overtake Lando Norris.

However, the downforce generated by McLaren's MCL60 assisted Norris. There was sufficient temperature after the restart, and because there was no DRS for the first two laps, Hamilton could not overtake Norris for P2.

Hamilton's soft compound tires were scrubbing away and when he finally had the chance to overtake, he had no grip remaining, especially in the rear tires.

Lando Norris leading Lewis Hamilton during the 2023 British GP (Photo by Dan Mullan/Getty Images)

It was a great day for McLaren overall as the team scored 30 points, bringing them right behind Ferrari in the constructors' standings as Oscar Piastri finished P4 in the race, marking his best Formula 1 finish. The upgrades seem to have worked for the team in orange.