It’s fair to suggest that things are looking rather bleak when you are holding pre-race wagers with your team over how far you will finish behind your closest competitors.
O ye of little faith, Lando Norris!
The Brit had reason for his pessimism. The prospects of his McLaren had been all but written off around the slow, sweeping corners of the Shanghai International Circuit long before the Formula One circus rolled into town.
This place was supposed to be McLaren’s kryptonite. The weekend was all about damage limitation, we were warned.
Success looked like merely keeping in touch with the Ferraris. Daring to even think about entering the stratosphere of Red Bull? That wasn’t in the equation, not here.
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Max Verstappen took a dominant victory at the first Chinese Grand Prix in five years
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Lando Norris (right) performed admirably to finish second ahead of Sergio Perez
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It was the perfect weekend for Verstappen who also won the sprint race on Saturday
