Lando Norris' first victory of 2026 season makes little difference in championship chase

Lando Norris. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Lando Norris' first victory of 2026 season makes little difference in championship chase

By Clark Dalton | Last updated Jul 26, 2026 1:56 PM ET

McLaren Formula One driver Lando Norris won his first race of the 2026 season at the Hungarian Grand Prix on Sunday.

If the 2025 drivers' champion were still in the thick of the title hunt, that would be a bigger deal. Norris, however, isn't truly in the mix, making the victory much less consequential to the 2026 season.

Why Lando Norris' win doesn't make a huge difference in 2026 F1 championship chase

The 2026 season, like many F1 campaigns, has belonged to one driver: Mercedes-AMG wunderkind Kimi Antonelli. Entering Sunday, the baby-faced driver, who turns 20 on Aug. 25, was considered a heavy favorite to win the title. He remains in that position, even though he didn't win Sunday's race.

Antonelli finished third in Hungary behind Red Bull's Max Verstappen and Norris, scoring 15 points for Sunday's race and securing his 12th podium of the season. He remains first in the driver's standings with 219 points, well ahead of Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton (169). Hamilton finished fifth on Sunday after a penalty-riddled race.

A "beautiful" 12th career win for Lando #F1 #HungarianGP @McLarenF1 pic.twitter.com/LhZye7INVE
— Formula 1 (@F1) July 26, 2026

Norris (128 points) is now in fifth in the driver standings after winning. That explains why Antonelli wasn't sweating Sunday's result.

"No, not really," Antonelli said when asked if he envisioned being in such a great position before summer break, via F1's website. "Of course — I'm very happy it's the best way to go into summer break."

When he comes out of the summer break at the Dutch Grand Prix on Aug. 23, Antonelli, who has won six races this season, should keep flying.

Norris still deserves kudos for winning, preventing him from becoming the first defending champion to return to the grid and fail to win a race the following season. Still, assume he won't become a factor in the championship chase with 11 races remaining. The McLaren star has podiumed only four times in 2026 after racking up 18 in 2025.

The 2025 season was the year of Norris. The 2026 season should remain the year of Antonelli, even after the McLaren staple outpaced him on Sunday.

Clark Dalton

Clark Dalton is a 2022 journalism graduate of the University of Texas at Austin. He gained experience in sports media over the past seven years — from live broadcasting and creating short films to podcasting and producing. In college, he wrote for The Daily Texan. He loves sports and enjoys hiking, kayaking and camping.

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