Formula 1: Lando Norris set an interesting, under the radar record in 2019

Lando Norris set an interesting yet under the radar record in the 2019 Formula 1 season, his rookie year, en route to an 11th place finish in the driver standings.

Lando Norris may have only been a rookie in the 2019 Formula 1 season, but he quickly became one of the most entertaining and well-liked drivers on the grid.

The 20-year-old Briton ended up finishing the season in 11th place in the driver standings in his first season driving for McLaren.

But take away one or two of the mechanical issues that hampered him throughout the year, most notably his last-lap failure in the Belgian Grand Prix that cost him what would have been a career-high fifth place finish, and he would have finished in second in the “best of the rest” standings behind teammate Carlos Sainz Jr.

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Norris had the opportunity to break up the first ever top 10 sweep of drivers from different countries in the standings in the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at Yas Marina Circuit, and he would have done it had he held on for seventh place ahead of Racing Point’s Sergio Perez, as Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton, the 2019 season, also hails from the United Kingdom.

But on the 55th and final lap of this race around the 21-turn, 3.451-mile (5.554-kilometer) Yas Marina Circuit road course on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, Perez passed him for seventh place, promoting the Mexican into 10th in the driver standings and setting this first-time trend.

However, Norris did not close out the season without making his own history, and he actually did it in the season opener.

Norris was the youngest driver on the 2019 grid, as he started the year aged 19 and did not turn 20 until Wednesday, November 13.

When he competed in the season-opening Australian Grand Prix at Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit, he was 19 years and 124 days old, and he became the third youngest driver in Formula 1 history to compete in Formula 1 race.

He finished this 56-lap race around the 16-turn, 3.296-mile (5.304-kilometer) Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit road course in Albert Park, Melbourne, Australia in 12th place after qualifying in eighth to become the third youngest driver in Formula 1 history to finish a race.

Max Verstappen was 17 years and 166 days old when he competed in the Australian Grand Prix and Lance Stroll was 18 years and 148 days old when he competed in the race two years later. However, both drivers were forced to retire from their respective debuts.

However, Norris did what the top two drivers on those two lists did not do, and that is finish his debut race.

Norris became the youngest driver to finish his first race, and he broke this record by only one day. That record was previously 19 years and 125 days of age, and it was held by Jaime Alguersuari, who finished in 15th place on debut driving for Scuderia Toro Rosso in the 2009 Hungarian Grand Prix at the Hungaroring.

As for Verstappen and Stroll, Verstappen ended up finishing his first race two weeks after his debut in the next race, the Malaysian Grand Prix, at Sepang International Circuit while Stroll did so five weeks and three races after his debut in the Russian Grand Prix at Sochi Autodrom.

Will a younger driver than Lando Norris ever finish a Formula 1 race on debut? Barring an unexpected lineup change, that won’t happen in the 2020 season; in fact, Norris is actually the youngest driver on the 2020 grid, just like he was in 2019.