Lando Norris said he will always put the team first after handing fellow McLaren driver Oscar Piastri his maiden Formula One victory at Sunday's Hungarian Grand Prix.
Norris started on pole at the Hungaroring but dropped two places at the first corner as team-mate Piastri and world champion Max Verstappen surpassed him.
Verstappen later fell away and ultimately finished fifth, while Norris inched ahead of Piastri after making an earlier pitstop.
Norris – who claimed his first win at the Miami Grand Prix in May – was repeatedly asked to hand the lead back to Piastri but refused to do so until two laps before the finish.
It looked like Norris might refuse the order as engineer Will Joseph told him he would need Piastri's support to push for the world championship, but he told reporters after the race he would always prioritise the team.
"It's tough. It would be tough for anyone when you're leading the race to give it up," Norris told Sky Sports. "I was obviously put in the position.
"They made me box first and gave me the chance to lead the race and pull away quite comfortably and to do what I was doing.
"I think it was fair to give the position back. I don't want to come across as the guy who is not fair. Oscar has done a lot for me in the past and helped me in many races.
"He drove a better race than I did. He got a good start, a better start and mine sucked. He deserved it and it was the right thing to do."
McLaren team principal Andrea Stella, meanwhile, was proud of the drivers' efforts, telling Sky Sports: "We are on this trajectory together.
"None of us – the team, Lando or Oscar – can go alone. That's the message that we discussed on Sunday morning.
"With racing drivers you need to refresh this message. That's why we have this meeting every Sunday.
"We are extremely pleased by how our drivers are supporting the trajectory of McLaren which is incredible. For me, that's the news today."
Verstappen fumes at 's***' Red Bull strategy after finishing fifth at Hungarian Grand Prix
Max Verstappen raged at Red Bull's strategy after finishing fifth at the Hungarian Grand Prix, declaring the team are no longer able to rely on a pace advantage.
Verstappen recorded his joint second-worst finish of the year at the Hungaroring as Oscar Piastri led Lando Norris in a McLaren one-two.
The three-time world champion's race was defined by a collision with old rival Lewis Hamilton, coming into contact with the Mercedes on lap 63 when he overshot a corner on an attempted overtake.
Verstappen vented his frustrations over team radio, telling race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase: "You gave me this s*** strategy. I'm trying to rescue what's left."
Speaking to Sky Sports after the race, the Dutchman refused to apologise for those comments as he said: "I don't think we need to apologise.
"I just think we need to do a better job. I don't know why people think you cannot be vocal on a radio. This is a sport. If some people don't like that, then stay home."
Verstappen, who also dropped below Charles Leclerc late on, continued: "I'm not happy.
"On a day when we're lacking pace compared to McLaren, you hope we do the right things with strategy, which was not the case.
"You can't rely on a little pace advantage. Maybe last year when the car was quite a lot faster than everyone else, but in the position we are in now, we can't do that.
"Naturally that frustrates me because I want things to be done better. I'm realistic.
"Today we couldn't have beaten the McLarens, but a P3 was on the cards if we were on it a bit more."
McLaren a 'beast', says Piastri following Hungaroring triumph
Oscar Piastri labelled the McLaren car as a "beast" after claiming his first win in Formula One at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
Piastri became the seventh different winner of a race this season and the first Australian to triumph at the Hungaroring since 2014 on Sunday.
McLaren team-mate Lando Norris finished second to secure a first one-two for the British team since the 2021 Italian Grand Prix.
The result also marked their 10th podium of the season, the first time they have managed to reach that total since the 2012 season (13).
“It’s a beast at the moment, it’s fast in every condition, today we had it under control completely," Piastri said.
"It was an amazing feeling to be able to manage the race like that with both cars and secure a one-two.
“I’m incredibly happy for the whole team and get my first win on the board.”
Piastri claimed his maiden triumph at the 34th attempt for McLaren, having previously finished on the podium twice this season in Austria and Monaco.
The Australian's win moves him up to fifth in the driver's championship and is now just five points behind Ferrari's Carlos Sainz.
“Very very special, this is the day I’ve dreamed of as a kid standing on the top step of an F1 podium," said Piastri.
"A bit complicated at the end but I put myself in the right position at the start and thank you for the team for an amazing car.
“It’s a hell of a lot of fun racing with McLaren so I can’t thank them enough for giving me the opportunity to be in F1, and to be winning with them 18 months in is an incredible feeling.”
But the win did not come without its controversy.
Piastri led Norris for most of the race, but an earlier final pit stop for Norris - made by McLaren to protect him against Lewis Hamilton, put him ahead of his team-mate.
Norris was repeatedly asked to slow and let Piastri back past, and reminded of his responsibility to the team, but he refused to do so until just two laps from the end.
“The longer you leave it of course you get a bit nervous, but it was well executed by the team, it was the right thing, I put myself in the right position at the start," Piastri added.
“With the different strategy we had, yes my pace probably wasn’t as quick as I would have liked in the last stint but I was still in the right position to make it happen.”
Piastri claims maiden triumph as Hamilton reaches podium milestone in Hungary
Oscar Piastri claimed his first win in Formula One as Lewis Hamilton became the first driver in history to secure 200 podiums at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
Piastri was handed his maiden triumph by McLaren team-mate Lando Norris with two laps remaining, with the Brit undercutting his partner in the second round of pitstops before being told to re-establish the order.
Norris endured a difficult start at the Hungaroring, dropping two places after just one corner with Piastri and Max Verstappen passing him early on.
But the Dutchman was forced to give the position back to Norris as he continued to squabble over the radio to the Red Bull garage.
Hamilton was the first of the frontrunners to pit, performing a successful undercut on Verstappen. The three-time world champion then attempted to overtake Hamilton on lap 35 but went off track in the process.
When Verstappen came close again to his rival, he attempted the overtake into turn one, but they collided, sending the Red Bull up into the air with seven laps remaining.
After more than 20 laps of being told over team radio to give the lead back to Piastri, Norris finally obliged as McLaren secured a first one-two since 2021.
Ferrari's Charles Leclerc and Verstappen made up the top five, with George Russell and Sergio Perez scoring impressive points having started towards the back of the grid.
Data Debrief: Piastri win a long time coming
Piastri's triumph saw him become the seventh different race winner this season, becoming the first Australian driver to win the Hungarian Grand Prix.
McLaren secured their 10th podium of the season, the first time they have managed that many since 2012 (13). The last time McLaren finished one-two in a race was at the Italian Grand Prix in 2021. On that day, Norris was again the runner-up, this time to his former team-mate Daniel Ricciardo.
Norris' second-placed finish earned him a 21st podium for McLaren, equalling Denny Hulme as the driver with the eighth-most podiums in the history of the British team.
Hamilton, meanwhile, claimed a record 200th podium finish (49 with McLaren and 151 with Mercedes), becoming the first driver in F1 history to reach that milestone.
Top 10
1. Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
2. Lando Norris (McLaren)
3. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
4. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
5. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
6. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari)
7. Sergio Perez (Red Bull)
8. George Russell (Mercedes)
9. Yuki Tsunoda (RB)
10. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS
Drivers
1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) – 265 points
2. Lando Norris (McLaren) – 189
3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) – 162
Constructors
1. Red Bull – 389
2. McLaren – 338
3. Ferrari – 322
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