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Horner Questions McLaren’s Strategy at British GP: Norris Loses Edge with Puzzling Tyre Choice
Christian Horner confused by McLaren's tactics: "Perhaps in retrospect, they might reconsider…"
Christian Horner was left scratching his head over McLaren's approach with Lando Norris during the British Grand Prix.
Red Bull Racing's team principal, Christian Horner, has raised doubts about McLaren's decision-making at the British Grand Prix, specifically regarding their choice not to equip Lando Norris with medium tyres for the last part of the race.
Norris moved into the front position by demonstrating remarkable speed when transitioning to intermediate tires.
Nonetheless, Lewis Hamilton gained an advantage in the race when Mercedes chose to switch to slick tires one lap before McLaren made the same decision.
Hamilton gained an advantageous track position from this, yet Norris remained a strong competitor as Mercedes chose the less long-lasting soft option.
However, McLaren opted for the soft tires for Norris, which wore out significantly, leading to him falling behind Max Verstappen.
McLaren once again failed to capitalize on their chance, lagging behind despite possessing a faster vehicle than Red Bull during the Silverstone race.
After the race, Horner commented, "McLaren had an ace up their sleeve with a new medium compound. Neither Mercedes nor we had that advantage. Honestly, I was anticipating them to switch to a set of yellow tyres. Perhaps in retrospect, they might reconsider their strategy…"
"We must give props to Lewis. He's an intense rival, and I'm aware that this victory is particularly significant to him. It's a win that's been warmly received and is thoroughly merited."
Horner characterized the overall race as "strange" and believed that opting for the hard tires with Verstappen towards the finish was their optimal chance to enhance their outcome.
"We were close to clinching victory. It was an odd race. Initially, our speed wasn’t up to par while on the medium tyre,” he further mentioned.
Mercedes appeared to have everything in hand. However, when the rain started, McLaren seemed to take the lead. We were falling behind. At that moment, my concern was for Carlos Sainz, who was challenging Max.
"We decided to switch to the intermediate tires at the optimal moment. Staying out for one more lap on those intermediates not only catapulted us into third place, but I believe it also caused some damage to the tire during that lap."
"Until the rest also experienced degradation, we had backed off. We began to return, and the situation stabilized. The decision then came down to the choice of tyres for the last leg. We observed that the soft tyres weren't holding up well, deteriorating after just six or seven laps for other vehicles at the race's outset. Therefore, we opted for the hard tyres. It seemed like our optimal opportunity."
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