despite a winless weekend
ADD Motorsports driver Lando Norris did just enough to close the gap on second in the battle for the Ginetta Junior Championship title.
The 14-year-old showed electrifying pace all weekend to finish second in the last race at Rockingham Circuit - although a slight misjudgment cost him a podium in the first.
And with just one point separating him from an outstanding second place finish in his debut season, he’s determined to put on a better show in the final two races and push his rivals all the way.
He said: “I’m happy with the way the weekend went, I have come first and second in each of the last three weekends, so it was always likely to come to an end at some point.
“I was really fast and although I could have done better, it was still a good weekend all in all.
“There’s just two races left and I’m aiming for two wins in the next round. We’ve been a lot faster than everyone, so if we keep it up, there’s no reason why I can’t.”
Lando was lightning-quick from the start - fastest by four-tenths in the first practice and by two-tenths in the second. Even when they changed the tyres half way through the second, the pace was still there.
This pace continued into qualifying where both his best laps were better than anyone else’s. Just half a tenth separated the times and saw him get pole for both races.
He got off to a good start in Race One, but made a mistake on the first hairpin which saw him drop to second.
Lando had to defend his position which saw a gap begin to open between him and first place, but slowly he clawed his way back into contention.
With a lap to go he saw a chance to overtake and went for it, unfortunately misjudging it slightly and knocking both drivers out of the podium places.
Despite spinning, he got back into the race as quickly as he could, but had to be content with an eighth place finish.
The move saw Lando hit with a five-place grid penalty, meaning he started Race Two in sixth position.
He didn’t get off the best start and was eighth on the first corner but soon got into third.
And this was soon second, when the Glastonbury racer chased down the driver in front and seized upon a mistake.
However, despite setting the fastest lap, he couldn’t catch up with the eventual winner and took another second place.
He added: “The overtake was on in the first race and I wanted to go for it, but I just misjudged it. It was annoying, but these things happen.
“But our team is really fast at the moment which is brilliant for us drivers.
“I couldn’t quite put the performance in that the pace deserved this week, but I’m definitely going to keep pushing in the next two rounds and see where we get to.”
