Dutch Grand Prix: Norris suffers HUGE setback as McLaren F1 star's struggles continue

Three-time Formula 1 world champion Max Verstappen had an excellent start to the Dutch Grand Prix, dealing a huge setback to pole-sitter Lando Norris.

The McLaren star's reaction time of 0.28 seconds was identical to Verstappen's, however, the Brit lost 0.41 seconds to his rival going from 0-200 km/h.

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Unfortunately, this keeps up Norris' struggles in terms of giving up the lead into the first corner when starting at the front.

Elsewhere, George Russell managed to get ahead of Norris' team-mate Oscar Piastri as he proceeded to hunt the second McLaren.

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McLaren have disastrous Dutch GP start

Piastri soon came under pressure from Charles Leclerc who flew past Sergio Perez into fifth but managed to hold onto his position.

At the other end of the grid, penalty-stricken Lewis Hamilton moved up into P12 as he benefitted by starting on the soft tires with an advantage over the other medium runners.

Another early winner was the Alpine of Pierre Gasly, who had an incredible start and overtook the Aston Martins of Lance Stroll and Fernando Alonso.

However, as Carlos Sainz made his way up through the top ten Gasly lost his hard-earned P7 to the faster Ferrari, following a fair but intriguing battle on track.

Whilst Norris' race appeared to be over as soon as the lights went out, he slowly gained on Verstappen and pulled off a stunning overtake down the inside of Turn 1 to claim the lead on lap 18.

The Dutchman attempted to stick with Norris, but the McLaren star looked increasingly comfortable as he pulled out a five-second lead ahead of the Red Bull before their round of pit stops.

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