McLaren hail 'cold-blooded' Lando Norris after mastering Monaco GP concern

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella stated Lando Norris needed “cold blood” to navigate the traffic during the Monaco Grand Prix.

Norris secured his second win of the season on Sunday as he converted his pole position to the top step of the podium.

Traffic became a major issue for the front runners as “trains” formed by drivers who were deliberately driving slowly to offer a boost to their team-mates inside the points.

It meant Norris was forced to navigate several cars at once - but after doing so successfully en route to victory, he received praise from team boss Stella.

“I think Lando kept the high standards, the quality of execution and the lucidity that he has had throughout the weekend,” Stella told media including RacingNews365.

“He was fast from lap one in practice one, and he kept building from lap one in practice one to capitalise on a pole position.

“[In the race] he went through various situation which required like cold blood, I would say.

“The most stressful moment was when he went for the second time through the back markers, knowing that we could have called him in, and he stayed very lucid, no panic.

“I really think that Lando deserves to be praised for a very, very well-managed and executed weekend.

“This is just the start of many more coming in the future.”

McLaren unconcerned over lap one lock up

Norris' lead came under threat on the opening lap as he locked up his tyre as Charles Leclerc drew alongside him.

However, Stella detailed the team had no concerns over the health of the tyre after its lock up.

“No, we were not very worried, because it didn't happen straight as he touched the brakes,” Stella outlined. “It wasn't coming from high speed. 

“So when we looked at the metrics that you can derive from some parameters and sensors, we saw that the metrics characterising the lock up, they were relatively low.

“We weren't too concerned about tyre life or tire performance over a long stint.”