Overjoyed but nervous Norris: 'Would prefer to watch it from a distance'

Lando Norris surprised everyone by qualifying in third place for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, managing to beat out Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas to a spot directly behind Max Verstappen. 

Norris declared after qualifying that he was also surprised by his fast lap. "I was going for pole, but it didn't quite work out that way," he jokes. He knew he had a good lap, but didn't expect it to be good enough for third place on the grid.

Grinning Norris

The whole thing makes for a broad grinning Norris, who admits to being a little nervous about what's going to play out on the grid in front of him on Sunday. "I'm a bit nervous, I'd rather watch everything from a distance and not get involved," says the McLaren driver.

So, Norris will start the final race from third place, next to Perez, who sacrificed his first run in Q3 to give Max Verstappen a tow. That proved to be an excellent move, because it gave Verstappen pole position.

Norris, however, has revealed he won't be too punchy in the opening stages, wary to stay out of the championship fight.

LANDO: "I went pole, didn't quite work out, I was a little bit off! It was a nice lap to be P3, it was a bit of a surprise.

"I kind of just want to see everything unfold, but I don't want to get involved too much"#AbuDhabiGP \ #F1 pic.twitter.com/gQo2hz6Jnk

— Formula 1 (@F1) December 11, 2021